What is Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) Therapy?
Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) therapy (also known as autologous blood concentrate therapy) is a treatment that uses a small amount of the patient’s blood to accelerate the body’s natural healing response and decrease recovery time following a dental procedure.
PRP therapy is used in oral and maxillofacial surgery and implantology. Its uses now expand to other medical fields such as dermatology, orthopedic surgery, and sports medicine.
How Does PRP Therapy Work?
PRP is used to accelerate healing following procedures that affect the body’s soft and hard tissue. Here’s how it works:
When you’re injured, your body immediately rushes blood to the concerned area to begin the healing process. This blood carries platelets, which benefit healing by triggering clotting to prevent bleeding. Platelets also contain growth factors, which increase the speed and quality of healing.
Prior to a dental procedure, we extract a small amount of the patient’s blood. Then, we’ll use a machine called a centrifuge to spin the blood at high speeds until its components have separated.
Once separated, the platelet-rich portion of the blood is collected. Dr. K Ashraf simply applies the PRP to the affected area to spur your body’s natural healing process.
Who Makes a Good PRP Therapy Candidate?
Platelet-Rich Plasma therapy is a good option for patients who are set to receive a dental procedure such as dental implants. PRP therapy is particularly beneficial for patients who struggle to heal quickly. Dr. K Ashraf can easily integrate this tissue-regenerating remedy into your treatment plan to accelerate the healing process.
With that said, if you have certain medical conditions such as anemia, cancer, or a blood clotting disorder, PRP therapy might not be the ideal treatment for you. Schedule a consultation with Dr. K Ashraf today — he’ll find the treatment that works best for you.
Enhanced Treatment With PRP Therapy
PRP therapy works with a variety of dental procedures, including those that affect your mouth’s hard and soft tissues. This treatment can be used in the following dental procedures, like dental implant surgery, bone grafting procedures, gum grafting procedures, and tooth extractions. PRP provides a better outcome for these procedures. And patients heal more quickly.
Platelet-Rich Plasma therapy can be a powerful addition to any dental procedure that requires soft or hard tissue healing. During your next visit, ask Dr. K Ashraf if PRP therapy can be implemented as part of your treatment plan.
How Much Does PRP Therapy Cost?
Dr. K Ashraf wants PRP therapy to be available to as many of our patients as possible. We make PRP therapy affordable, so it can be integrated with a variety of dental procedures.
Dr. K Ashraf and our team are here to answer any financing questions you have and we’ll work with you to find your best payment option.
Why Our Patients Choose Us
One of the few dentists in Canada who offers PRP therapy, Dr. K Ashraf provides consistent results for our patients. He’s uncommonly qualified to deliver effective PRP treatment because he studied PRP therapy under Dr. Arun Garg. Dr. Garg is considered one of the world’s foremost authorities on bone biology, harvesting, and grafting for dental implant surgery. Alongside Dr. Robert E. Marx, he pioneered the use of platelet-rich plasma (PRP).
Training in Canada, the United States, and China, Dr. K Ashraf has traveled the world in search of cutting-edge dental technology to assist our patients in Waterloo. If you’re looking for complete modern dental care, schedule a consultation with Dr. K Ashraf today.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is PRP?
PRP stands for Platelet-Rich Plasma. The blood in a person’s body is made of blood cells suspended in a fluid called Plasma. Plasma contains platelets, which are cell fragments that the body sends to an injured area to make the bleeding stop (clotting) and accelerate the healing process. In PRP therapy, Dr. K Ashraf draws a small portion of the patient’s blood and then uses a machine called a centrifuge to separate platelets from the plasma. These platelets can then be used during and after treatment to boost the healing process.
How does a centrifuge allow Dr. Ashraf to separate the valuable PRP cells from your blood plasma?
A centrifuge is a highly-calibrated machine that uses the sedimentation principle to separate the particles from a solution. Dr. K Ashraf simply places a small amount of the patient’s blood in a test tube and the centrifuge spins it around, causing the denser particles to move away from the center. Then we remove the PRP and use it to aid your recovery following a dental procedure.
Does the PRP process hurt?
PRP therapy uses the healing ability inside your own blood to speed up the recovery process. Drawing blood causes a momentary twinge of pain and it can leave the affected area sore for a day or two. But after that, the patient shouldn’t feel any additional discomfort.
How much time does the PRP process add to a dental procedure?
The PRP process is fast. It generally takes about 30 minutes and adds little to no extra time to your overall treatment plan. After the blood is drawn, we’ll process and prepare it so it will be ready to use during your dental procedure.
What are the advantages of PRP?
Dr. K Ashraf uses PRP therapy with a variety of different procedures to:
- Protect the tooth socket after extraction
- Promote the healing of bone grafts
- Maximize the effectiveness of sinus lifts
- Initiate faster tissue regeneration after gum tissue grafts
- Encourage healing after dental cyst removal
- Prevent dry socket after wisdom tooth extraction
- Help immunocompromised patients heal more efficiently
How much does PRP usually cost?
Every patient is different and thus requires a unique treatment plan. PRP therapy generally is at an affordable cost. For more information, explore our complete cost and financing guide.
What makes a good candidate for PRP?
To find out if you’re a candidate for PRP therapy, schedule a consultation with Dr. K Ashraf today. While PRP is available to most patients, it probably isn’t the ideal treatment for those who suffer from certain medical conditions such as anemia. During your consultation, Dr. K Ashraf will review your medical history to determine if PRP is right for you.