The core appeal of PRP (short for Platelet Rich Plasma), which we offer here at MUSE Clinic in Chatswood, is its status as the ultimate in natural healing. In essence we take a blood sample from the individual person and immediately put it in a centrifuge, which spins the blood at such high speed that the red blood cells separate from the platelet-rich plasma, the golden substance that contains hundreds of proteins called growth factors, which play a crucial important part in the healing of injuries. By isolating this precious ‘liquid gold’ from the blood plasma, you can reinject it back into the skin in a concentration that is up to 10 times richer in the precious growth factors than is typically found in blood. This triggers and amplifies the body’s own extraordinary, natural healing process.
The body is already primed to self-heal. Think about when you cut or scratch yourself in the kitchen. It is seemingly miraculous how clotting will immediately stop active bleeding, then that clot signals the other cells to rush into the wound and start growing collagen and new tissue to pull the skin together again. The skin repairs and even remodels itself, and then a number of weeks or months later the skin will be flawless once more.
What makes PRP treatment so distinctive is that we harness the body’s own ability to self-repair, giving the skin more of what it needs to repair. By injecting the richer plasma back into the areas of skin where we want to see amplified repair, we get more collagen, elastin and natural hyaluronic acid (the moisture-binding substance in our skin that helps create hydration in skin). It is a nice, gradual progressive treatment with no external chemicals added, so there is no risk of allergy or reaction. We just use your blood – nothing else. As a medical practitioner, I find this a hugely appealing approach.
How does PRP fit into your clinical skincare regimen?
Platelet rich plasma integrates really well with the other solutions that we offer at MUSE clinic. While PRP doesn’t tackle everything that we see with ageing or address the volume concerns with the ageing face, it certainly gives skin that maximum kickstart.
If we work on improving or maintaining the youthful structure and foundation of the facial features, get the contouring and shape right and soften lines with anti-wrinkle injections, then PRP buffs the surface tone of the skin beautifully. We primarily use PRP for improving tone, texture and fine lines, and have seen results in our patients’ skin – it feels and looks smoother, firmer and more lifted.
PRP is a great place to start for newcomers and those who would rather take a more natural, softly, softly approach to skin enhancement and anti ageing. If you are not keen on injections, dermal fillers, facial lasers or don’t want to cross the line into chemical peels, using your very own blood is an elegant solution.
Can I use PRP anywhere else?
In principle, why would you stop at the jawline when it comes to helping skin help itself? PRP is also effective on the décolletage, which is an often damaged area due to so much exposure to the Australian sun, especially when we are wearing skimpy summer clothing. In my experience, while many people apply sunscreen on their face and even further down the neck, far fewer apply SPF protection down to the chest. I see a lot of photo damage there: crinkly, crepey tissue and hyperpigmentation in the neck to chest area. This area is great for the wound healing powers of boosted growth factors.
I have also applied platelet rich plasma to hands before with great results. I find that the skin on hands often requires a combination approach. We can remove visible skin pigmentation with laser. We can even volumise the hands with dermal fillers to hide the increasingly sunken appearance that comes exposed tendons and blood vessels. We can then apply PRP over the surface as a finishing touch to improve the superficial skin quality. It’s all about layering the treatments!
In my view however, PRP is generally better suited to the thinner tissue of eyes, necks and crepey arms. We all get that crinkliness as we get older, but most women want to wear sleeveless dresses as long as they can, so we need to intervene to help give the body a fighting chance to maintain skin elasticity as long as possible.
Various medical professionals have also investigated the use of platelet rich plasma in genital areas as part of the new wave of vaginal rejuvenation, which targets the overall structural tightness of the vagina as it becomes more lax with age and post-childbirth. One doctor trademarked the ‘O Shot’ treatment where the practitioner injects PRP into the vaginal wall or to improve blood supply to those areas, boosting cellular repair and rejuvenation as well as increasing vaginal dryness as well. Not only does the ‘O’ shot help post-menopausal or perimenopausal women with the diminished quality of the vaginal skin, but there can be some sexual advantage to boosting the blood supply to this area, which increases the possibility of orgasm. Men can even have the “P Shot” where PRP is injected in to the penis to improve blood flow and reportedly improve the quality of their erection. The market here in Australia for aesthetic work in the genital area is small market, but increasing – which I think is related to the cultural exposure to porn and more imagery than we have ever seen before. I think women – and men – are comparing themselves more than ever. There is a growing awareness that this is another option on the menu. Outside of aesthetics, there are other applications of platelet rich plasma in medicine, for orthopaedic and muscular-skeletal problems, so it is an exciting new field.
On the whole though, faces are a great and easy place to start. We have developed expertise in PRP here at MUSE, and it is one of my preferred ways to start the rejuvenation journey and help skin start to bloom.
