Benefits of plasma rich in growth factors (PRGF) in skin photodamage: Clinical response and histological assessment

Abstract

Skin ageing is characterized by small and fine wrinkles, roughness, laxity, and pigmentation as a result of epidermal thinning, collagen degradation, dermal atrophy, and fewer fibroblasts. Plasma rich in growth factors (PRGF) is an autologous plasma preparation enriched in proteins obtained from patient's own blood aimed at accelerating tissue repair and regeneration. To evaluate the benefits of PRGF in skin photodamage, 10 healthy volunteers were treated with three consecutive intradermal injections of PRGF in the facial area. Clinical outcomes and histological analysis were performed. A statistically significant increase in the epidermis and papillary dermis thickness was seen after PRGF treatment (p < 0.001). Skin thickening was observed in all patients studied, being more intense in the group of patients with photodamage (p < 0.001). After PRGF treatment, a reduction of the average area fraction of solar elastosis was observed in patients with clinical and histological signs of skin photodamage (p < 0.05).No changeswere observed in the number of CD31, XIIIa factor, cKit, CD10, nor p53-positive cells. The improvement score after PRGF use was 0.75 (9/12) for the group of patients with signs of skin photodamage. Intradermal PRGF infiltration appears to be an effective treatment for the photodamaged skin.

An autologous protein gel for soft tissue augmentation: in vitro characterization and clinical evaluation

“…As it is showed in the pre‐ and post‐treatment images and patient/clinical surveys, a soft tissue augmentation effect was noticed along with an overall skin quality improvement in terms of hydration, elasticity, wrinkle reduction and general satisfaction scores. These results are consistent with other reports in which autologous growth factors were intradermally applied with the aim of boosting the dermo‐epidermal renewal of aged patients . Thus, the AG not only acts as a temporary biodegradable volumizer but also and more importantly, as a soft tissue stimulator.…”

“…The potential ability of PRP for activating cell tissue turnover may enhance dermal thickness, improving the tone and elasticity of skin thereby counterbalancing chronological aging mechanisms which slow metabolic activity and render skin atrophy . In fact, PRGF has proved to reverse the ultraviolet light‐derived skin photoaging, also known as solar elastosis, by inducing dermal fibroblast proliferation, preventing cellular apoptosis and promoting the neo‐angiogenesis, which is translated into a thickened dermis with newly synthetized collagen and elastic fibers …”

“…All patients were evaluated before and 3 months after the beginning of the study. Both clinical and patient surveys were recorded using validated Likert´s scale or global esthetic improvement scale (GAIS) respectively . Macrophotographs and ultrasound analyses were also performed.…”

“…Recently, the field of esthetic medicine has also attracted the attention of these autologous therapies for the treatment of skin aging. The pioneering autologous platelet‐rich plasma (PRGF) has been also used in dermatology . A novel injectable PRGF based 3D formulation has been recently described .…”

The effect of plasma rich in growth factors combined with follicular unit extraction surgery for the treatment of hair loss: A pilot study

“…PRGF provides an optimal intracellular ionic balance with ideal pH values of 7.9 and physiological osmolarity of 300 mOsm/kg, which could be related to our results in terms of histomorphometric perifollicular tissue integrity . Previous studies have also reported the extracellular matrix remodeling effect of PRGF including collagen regeneration and elastic fiber tridimensional arrangement . This could be translated into higher percentage of viable grafts due to the lower rate of old dense and highly packaged collagen bundle accumulation over transplanted hairs resulting in a reduction of perifollicular fibrosis .…”