Biologic Treatments

Over the last decade or so, there has been a surge in interest in using biologic (or regenerative) injections in orthopedics to improve tissue healing, decrease pain, and, in some cases, to avoid surgery.  Dr Blackman and his team treat patients with these types of injections regularly.  Below is some information about the two primary types of biologic injections, platelet rich plasma (PRP) and stem cells.

Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP):

PRP is a product that is obtained from your own blood after spinning it down in a process called centrifugation.  Centrifugation separates the blood into different components.  The plasma portion is yellow and contains a high concentration of platelets, along with a low combination of other blood cells.  This platelet-rich plasma has a large concentration of growth factors that, when injected into an injured or damaged area, create a healing, regenerative environment.  PRP has excellent scientific evidence to support its use in osteoarthritis of the knee, various tendon conditions (tennis elbow, patellar tendinitis, etc), and acute soft-tissue injuries.

 

Stem Cells:

The type of stem cells that are used in orthopedic applications are mesenchymal stem cells (MSC’s).  These cells are a type of progenitor cell, meaning they can differentiate into many different other types of cells (muscle, tendon, bone, etc) depending on the environment they are in.  MSC’s are harvested from your own tissue.  In most cases, they are harvested from the bone marrow in your pelvis.  The MSC’s can then be injected into injured areas to promote regeneration of these damaged tissues.  While clinical evidence is limited for MSC use in most circumstances, there is excellent laboratory evidence that MSC’s can be beneficial for regenerating muscle, bone, tendon and cartilage in certain conditions.

 

Insurance Coverage:

In nearly all cases, insurance providers do no cover PRP or stem cell injections, as they are considered investigational.  As such, patients must pay out of pocket to qualify for these procedures.  Prices for biologic injections are below and are all-inclusive.  Please inquire about payment plans that may be available in cases of financial hardship.

PRP

  • $300 per treatment (often two small areas can be treated for the same price)

Stem Cells

  • $2,000 per treatment for office-based with local anesthesia
  • $3,000 per treatment for hospital-based with moderate sedation
    • (often multiple areas can be treated for the same price)

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