WHAT TO LOOK OUT FOR WHEN CHOOSING A PRP PROVIDER
PRP (platelet rich plasma) has received significant attention in the fields of tissue engineering, wound healing, bone grafting, and trauma surgery in recent years. This is because PRP contains up to 30 times the amount of growth factors your blood normally contains, making it the liquid gold of tissue regeneration and restoration.
When combined with microneedling, PRP can virtually stall the aging process, making this procedure one of the greatest developments in dermatology of our time. However, not all “PRP” facials are the same, and it is important to know what you need to look for when selecting a provider in order to see maximum results.
Human platelet containing alpha-granules, which are vesicles full of growth factors.
4 ESSENTIAL THINGS TO BE AWARE OF WHEN CHOOSING A PRP MICRONEEDLING PROVIDER:
1. THE CONCENTRATION OF THE PLASMA
You should always receive your plasma treatment from a professional who has had formal laboratory training, for example a nurse or doctor who took chemistry and biology laboratory classes as a pre-req for their medical/nursing classes. The effectiveness of your PRP treatment is directly dependent on the concentration of PRP. Therefore, it is critical that your provider possess the technical training and correct equipment to generate a well-prepared sample. The wrong device, or the wrong lab technique could result in improper dilution of your blood sample, rendering your treatment ineffective.
2. BLOOD SAFETY PRECAUTIONS
Blood carries diseases like Hepatitis, syphilis, and HIV, so you want to ensure the provider’s facility has the proper protocols in place for containment of blood waste, and disposal of dirty needles. At SLK clinic, our nurses have been trained in infection control since year one of nursing school. We use hospital-grade disinfectant to clean each room and all equipment in between every patient. Additionally we are serviced by a bio-hazard collection agency regularly to safely dispose of all needles.
3. MULTIPLE HANDLERS OF YOUR BLOOD SAMPLE
Most medspas do not operate like a hospital where every patient blood specimen is carefully labeled and barcoded with the patient’s information. Thus the chance for medical error can potentially be higher in a medspa setting. For example, if an aesthetician is performing your microneedling procedure (which, by the way, is considered legally problematic, read why here), they will first have a nurse draw your blood because because aestheticians do not have a license to do so. Ultimately, this results in your blood sample passing through multiple hands which is not ideal because of the well-known fact that every “hand-off” is an opportunity for to accidentally mix up one patient’s lab sample with another’s. Thus it is best to ensure the person drawing your blood is the same person performing your PRP injections.
4. THE PROVIDER
At SLK, only nurses and nurse practitioners will perform your treatment from beginning to end. No other healthcare professional is taught to handle needles, inject medicine, and draw blood as early on as nurses are. Additionally, no healthcare professional is as well-versed in cleanliness, aseptic technique and infection control as nurses are, ensuring you have the safest treatment possible.
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Before (left) and after 4 sessions of microneedling with platelet-rich plasma
