How Dentistry is Benefiting With PRP and PRF Processes?

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The subject of Human Teeth has always been an intriguing one and we all have grown up listening to the tooth fairy stories about the missing tooth. But thanks to the burgeoning research in the field of science, we have dentistry at our disposal.

The various processes such as PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma) and PRF (Platelet Rich Fibrin) offer to provide the latest technological dental care. The human blood is found to contain a lot of components with healing properties and as our body prefers natural healing, these processes become a lot easier. Both these technologies are frequently used for surgical procedures in medical and dental areas, especially in oral and maxillofacial surgery, plastic surgery and sports medicine. The key aim behind using these technologies is to dig up all the elements from a blood sample that could be used to improve healing and promote tissue regeneration.

In the field of dentistry, both these platelet-rich therapies (PRP and PRF) are used for speedy recoveries after certain dental procedures. Now, let us throw some more light on the above processes and learn more about them.

Platelet Rich Fibrin (PRF)

Platelet Rich Fibrin, i.e. (PRF) is the newer and the simpler of the two. PRF is a substance that is found and extracted from the blood. It is derived from the concentration of the patient’s blood platelets. PRF possesses amazing natural healing properties and is completely in line with the holistic approach to oral health. The process involves the collection of blood and its centrifugation which results in the formation of fibrin membrane through natural polymerization. PRF includes platelets, leukocytes, and fibrin matrix and it can be used alone or in addition to other biomaterials, without any inflammatory reactions. Centrifugation results in the formation of three layers of a cellular plasma, fibrin clot and RBC’s at the bottom.

The success rate of this process depends on the time span between the collection of blood and its centrifugation. The fibrin membrane formed helps in reviving the release of many growth factors which are involved during wound healing by facilitating tissue regeneration, reducing swelling and inflammation, preventing bacterial, fungal or another kind of infections, etc. This process is best suited in aging patients with low risks and affirmative results. PRF not only speeds the healing process but also helps to heal the wounds to a much greater extent than has the wound been left to heal on its own.

Benefits of PRF

Below mentioned are few of the key benefits of PRF in dentistry:

  • PRF helps to restore peri-implant bone by attracting osteoblasts (bone-forming cells) to the area of concern
  • It helps in preserving alveolar ridge
  • PRF generates new bone and aids in healing periodontal defects, thus improves the health of your teeth
  • PRF is useful in oral cancer as it can reconstruct the bony defects after cancer surgery.
  • PRF helps in gum regeneration by enhancing the gum volume.
  • PRF heals mucosal (soft tissue) margins by joining them which even sutures can’t heal
  • PRF has antibacterial properties, thus helps to prevent and treat infections
  • PRF speeds up wound healing
  • As per some studies, PRF is probably the only material that can augment maxillary sinus floors.
  • PRF reduces osteitis (inflammation of the bone) by up to 90%.

On the whole, PRF is a natural surgical additive that carries low risks and provides excellent results. PRF is suitable to be used alone as well as in combination with other biomaterials. PRF may also present some disadvantages such as the blood collection time and its transference for the centrifuge greatly affect the success of PRF, it becomes quite difficult to store PRF after preparation and it shrinks, dehydration causing shrinkage and alteration in the structural integrity of PRF demands its instant use after preparation. Moreover, the manipulation of PRF requires a clinical experience.

Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP)

Platelet Rich Plasma, i.e. (PRP) on the other hand aims at tissue regeneration and wound healing in a lot of dental and oral surgery procedures such as PRP tooth removal, PRP dental implants, PRP bone grafts and more. Today PRP has become a very popular process in the dental region as it plays an important role in the patient’s recovery process after oral surgery. In simple terms, PRP is plasma with a big concentration of platelets that are typically found in the blood. The process involves extracting blood from the patient, its centrifugation resulting in a platelet-rich fragment of plasma.

It is loaded with high concentrations of growth factors directed towards the site of bone defect or other regions requiring amplification. The PRP gel is formed by mixing the extracted plasma with thrombin and calcium chloride. PRP allows our body to take benefit from the normal healing pathways at an increased speed. During the process of healing, the body transfers a number of cells and cell-types to the affected area (wound) in order to kick off the healing process. Thus, this therapy is all about injecting the concentration of platelets into a particular damaged area of the human body to promote tissue repair and accelerate healing.

Benefits of PRP:

Below mentioned are some of the key benefits of PRP in dentistry:

  • Safe with no published instances of risk of infections, the transmission of diseases like hepatitis and HIV, reactions or unfavorable effects.
  • PRP helps in increasing tissue synthesis due to its growth factors, thus results in faster tissue regeneration.
  • PRP can be prepared simultaneously while performing the surgery by a trained dental professional. So, it does not consume time.
  • It can be procured easily.
  • PRP is quite easy to handle as it actually improves the ease of application of bone substitute materials and bone grafting products by creating them more gel-like.
  • PRP not only helps to aid bone grafting for dental implants but it can also be beneficial in other forms of restorative dentistry procedures such as the closure of a cleft lip, fixing defects caused by tooth removal, or removal of cysts or fistulas.

Though PRP has benefits, it has the disadvantage related to tumour and dysplastic tissues due to overexpression of growth factors and their receptors. Also, the cost of buying the PRP processing system may not justify the cost to the patient for the complete procedure. Moreover, patients with bleeding disorders or hematologic diseases do not qualify for this procedure.

Conclusion:

In the dental field as well as in the broader medical sector, there is a remarkable value placed on fast healing. The faster a patient heals following surgery, the lower the risk of infection and other serious complications. Both Platelet Rich Fibrin (PRF) and Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) therapies are perfect for speedy recoveries after certain dental procedures. However, it is advisable to consult with your surgeon and/or primary care physician to determine whether PRF or PRP is right for you or not.