The use of PRP has become widespread in sports trauma for the last decade, as an alternative to surgery or as a surgical adjuvant. High-profile successes in high-level athletes, and the abolition of the list of substances and methods prohibited by WADA at the end of 2010, have literally sparked the appeal for this technique.
The absence of side effects and excellent tolerance, make the injection of PRP, carried out under rigorous conditions, a technique of great safety .
In our current state of knowledge, the effectiveness of PRP treatment is no longer demonstrated in the treatment of cartilage lesions(7 studies with high level of evidence), superior to hyaluronic acid.
Ultrasound guidance and good pain management (analgesia of pallium 1 or 2, MEOPA) are essential in the injection of tendon and muscular lesions but rarely necessary in the painful joint injection.
Treatments vary greatly from one practitioner to another, in terms of platelet concentration, cell richness (erythrocytes, leukocytes), ultrasound tracking, pain management, number of sessions and accompaniment. It is essential to better define the protocols through comparative studies.
The phase ofRehabilitation and reconditioning to stress is an essential step, often overlooked when PRP is presented as a miracle cure!