Platelet-Rich Fibrin: Your Body's Natural Healer

Platelet-rich fibrin, commonly known as PRF, is a revolutionary substance found and extracted from your own blood. PRF has a gelatin-like composition and is entirely biocompatible with your body. This amazing substance possesses natural healing properties that align with our holistic approach to oral health. When applied directly to areas that require healing, such as a cavitation left behind from an extracted tooth, PRF speeds up the healing process and helps wounds to heal to a much greater extent than if left to heal on their own.

How is PRF Extracted from Your Body?

To extract PRF from your blood, we draw a small sample into a glass container without adding any coagulants or thrombin. We then place the vile in a centrifuge and spin it at 3000 rpm for approximately ten minutes. This spinning process separates the blood into three layers: plasma at the top, red blood cells at the bottom, and fibrin clot in between.

Composition of PRF

PRF is composed of various components, each playing a crucial role in the healing process. These components include:

• Leukocytes: These are white blood cells that fight infection and promote healing.
• Platelets: They help in forming a blood clot and stop bleeding by forming clots at bleeding blood vessels.
• Autologous fibrin: This protein forms a mesh-like structure and binds all the components of the clot together, which is essential for stopping bleeding and wound healing.
• Cytokines: These are proteins with anti-inflammatory properties that fight swelling, pain, loss of function, increased temperature, and redness, all signs of inflammation. By fighting these signs, cytokines help in wound healing.
• Stem cells: These cells can convert into any type of cell, be it bone, blood, or muscle. Thus, they help in regenerating tissues and wound healing.

How is PRF Different from a Blood Clot?

PRF is different from a blood clot in several ways:

• Homogenous/ Alike/ Equal structure
• We can place it in the place that we want
• Stable
• Uses of PRF in Dentistry
• PRF has numerous uses in dentistry, including:
• Preserves Alveolar Ridge

PRF can preserve the alveolar ridge, which is the jaw bone that supports your teeth. After removing your teeth, whatever bone remains is known as the alveolar ridge. Sufficient jaw bone makes it good for implants or helps you retain your dentures (artificial teeth set).

Heals Periodontal Defects

PRF generates new bone and helps to improve the health of your teeth. It can reduce the probing depths too.

• Helps in Gum Regeneration
• PRF helps to enhance the gum volume.
• Prevents and Treats Infections
• PRF has antibacterial properties, thanks to leukocytes.

PRF prevents inflammation, which speeds up wound healing. It also provides a sustained release of growth factors, which helps your bone heal better when they come in contact with PRF. Additionally, PRF facilitates angiogenesis (formation of new blood vessels) at the site of wound, which contributes to healing. It also directs new cells such as epithelial cells (skin cells) to the area of wound so that fresh skin cells can cover the wound. Moreover, PRF helps to heal the palatal wound after gingival graft, attracts other cells such as bone forming osteoblasts and blood vessel-forming cells, and is essential for regenerating healthy tissue while keeping undesirable cells away. PRF is self-degradable, and it degrades within one to two weeks.

Maxillary Sinus Augmentation

PRF is believed to be the only material that can augment maxillary sinus floors. Maxillary sinus augmentation, also known as the sinus lift procedure, is a process that increases the height of the posterior maxilla (upper jaw bone) by placing extra bone. During the sinus lift procedure, there may be a perforation in the maxillary sinus, which can go unnoticed. PRF heals such perforations by depositing bone.

Reduces Osteitis

PRF reduces osteitis (inflammation of bone) by up to 90%. As a natural surgical additive, PRF carries low risks and provides good results. It is suitable for use alone or in combination with other biomaterials.

PRF at Sacramento Dental Medicine

PRF is a natural substance that your body produces, and it possesses amazing healing properties. As a biocompatible material, it has numerous uses in dentistry, such as preserving the alveolar ridge, healing periodontal defects, enhancing gum volume, preventing and treating infections, speeding up wound healing, augmenting maxillary sinus floors, and reducing osteitis. If you are looking for a safe and natural way to promote healing and improve your oral health, PRF may be the solution you are looking for.