Dental implants, teeth extraction, dental crowns, and most other dental procedures all have one thing in common: medium to long recovery periods. It does take a while for the mouth and gums to get restored to full health especially for aged patients whose bodies are no longer functioning as well as they used to
Dental procedures would be way better, less painful and easier to perform if there was a way to speed up the healing process after an implant is fixed or a tooth is extracted. Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) solves this problem.
What is Platelet Rich Plasma?
Naturally, the body has a system that facilitates the repair of bones and body tissues after an injury. This process works through platelets which are blood cells that are often the first to become active when a wound occurs and play a major role in making torn tissues grow back into place.
The concept of Platelet Rich Plasma optimizes this natural healing process by artificially creating a mixture from blood but with a high concentration of platelets. These platelets are then applied as a paste to the wound site and they have been shown to give quick result in tissue regeneration.
PRP has helped people recover quickly from surgical operations on different parts of the body including heart surgery, head and neck surgery and so on. Dentists have found that platelets work just as perfectly in improving recovery from dental procedures.
How is Platelet-Rich Plasma made?
PRP is made from the patient’s blood sample. The quantity of blood to be extracted is not so much as to cause any dizziness or weakness. The extracted blood is transferred from the syringe into a sample tube and placed in a standard centrifuge where it is spun to get the first plasma set which is called Platelet Poor Plasma. The PPP is extracted and taken through the centrifugation process again at a faster revolution and for a longer period to concentrate it further. The supernatant from the second centrifugation process is the Platelet Rich Plasma which is used in treatment.
Before it is used, the PRP is mixed in equal volumes with a solution that contains calcium chloride and sterile bovine thrombin resulting in a pasty substance that can be applied directly to the wound site.
Treatments that can be accompanied by the use of PRP
Fixing Dentures:
Getting dentures, especially full dentures, often require a lengthy healing period after extracting the remaining teeth. This may last for anywhere between 2 and 6 months during which the patient will be without teeth. PRP has been shown to speed up gum healing and tissue regeneration by as much as 6 times. This faster healing will definitely improve the denture fixing process and you can get your new teeth faster.
Teeth Extraction:
PRP can help to reduce the time it takes to feel pain and recover from a tooth extraction. The tooth extraction process sometimes involves having to cut through the gum to reach the tooth. PRP makes the gum heal faster from these and other incisions.
Dental Implants:
Dental implants sometimes require bone grafting to strengthen the gum area and jawbones and make them fit for fixing the implant. It does take time for the bone graft to grow into the existing bone structure before the implants can be fixed. PRP can get this done faster and reduce the time it takes to get the implant. Even after the implant has been fixed, the titanium screw has to grow into the jawbones through a process known as osseointegration. The osseointegration has to be complete before a dental crown or dentures can be fixed on the implant. PRP can also speed up the adjustment process.
What to expect when getting treated with PRP
All you get to do is drop a blood sample and the dentist takes it from there. To simplify the process further, the extraction your blood sample for centrifugation and injection for general anesthesia (if needed) may be combined to reduce the amount of discomfort you may feel from needle injections.
Ready to speed up your healing from a dental procedure?
At Dental Wellness, Chicago, we have state of the art facilities including standard centrifuges and other equipment to extract PRP and apply it to your treatment.