Athletes who tear tendons or suffer from worn cartilage in joints are usually anxious for treatment that can restore pain-free joint use. They are willing to try therapies such as the injection of platelet rich plasma into the affected joint even without knowing it helps. Italian researchers have just confirmed in a study of more than 100 people that such injections speed cartilage healing. The volunteers had pain or swelling affecting the knee. Those who received the injections of platelet rich plasma had less pain and better function. There were no serious complications in the treatment group. The investigators caution that more study is needed to follow this treatment over the long term to see how well it holds up for the future.
[American Orthopaedic Society for Sports Medicine’s (AOSSM) Annual Meeting in Baltimore, July 14, 2012]
