Autologous Conditioned Plasma Services

Conveniently located to serve the areas of Marin, San Francisco, Sonoma and Napa

The human body is a beautiful, intricate system of moving parts. While it has the impressive ability to heal itself from almost any injury, sometimes it may need our assistance to return to its best, healthy function. For patients who are looking for a natural but effective way to improve the health of their skin or body, an Autologous Conditioned Plasma treatment will achieve cutting-edge restoration and rejuvenation.

Autologous Conditioned Plasma, or ACP, is comprised of platelets, a major component of blood clotting, as well as plasma, which itself is full of proteins known as “growth factors,” which encourage healthy healing. This concentration of growth factors is prepared from a sample of your own blood that has been processed for potency and safe use. In fact, the number of growth factors can be 5 to 10 times greater in Autologous Conditioned Plasma than they are in a standard sample of your blood!

Autologous Conditioned Plasma Therapy is an effective way to nourish and jumpstart healthier healing and function in targeted areas of the body, without the use of incisions, foreign substances, or high temperatures. If you are interested in improving your body’s rate of healing or repairing your skin, we invite you to call Plastic Surgery Specialists today to schedule a complimentary consultation.

The Science of Autologous Conditioned Plasma Therapy

Our blood can be considered the messenger of our immune system, delivering the information necessary for tissue regeneration and healing. The plasma is the liquid portion of your own blood (55%) that contains a high quantity of proteins, including keratinocyte and fibroblast growth factors, which communicate the need for cell growth.

Your blood sample will be prepared with an activation agent in order to optimize the growth factors, as well as to help the Autologous Conditioned Plasma stay within the desired treatment area once injected. These growth factors can promote major healing and improved performance of our muscles, tendons, and other tissue, as well as achieve cosmetic improvements by promoting collagen production. The increase in vital collagen will tighten and heal the skin, effectively repairing scars and damaged capillaries, as well as filling in fine lines and wrinkles.

The recovery after a procedure that incorporates Autologous Conditioned Plasma tends to be shorter, due to the fact that Autologous Conditioned Plasma improves both healing rates and overall outcomes.

Benefits of Autologous Conditioned Plasma

Autologous Conditioned Plasma has been shown to improve healing and results from a variety of treatments. Benefits of Autologous Conditioned Plasma include:

  • Relieves joint disease and arthritis
  • Improves hip, knee, shoulder, and neck pain
  • Relieves sciatica and back pain
  • Promotes faster healing of ligaments and tendons
  • Heals fractures more quickly
  • Encourages tissue and collagen growth
  • Tightens and tones skin
  • Reduces past scarring
  • Smooths fine lines and wrinkles, including crow’s feet
  • Improves signs of sun damage
  • Reduces dark circles under the eyes
  • No risks of an allergic reaction, due to the procedure’s using your own blood
  • Minimally invasive to prepare and administer. Enables a comfortable procedure and overall easier recovery.

Autologous Conditioned Plasma can improve the healthy, soft, youthful quality of a patient’s skin.

Autologous Conditioned Plasma for Skin Rejuvenation

Autologous Conditioned Plasma, when incorporated into a skin rejuvenation treatment, will greatly improve the appearance and deep health of your skin. Praised for its anti-aging properties, Autologous Conditioned Plasma can be injected or applied as a step in almost any skin rejuvenation procedure. Some people, for example, incorporate it into their radiofrequency skin tightening treatment, or into a hyaluronic-rich facial.

The most common form of Autologous Conditioned Plasma Therapy for skin rejuvenation is a microchanneling treatment that incorporates Autologous Conditioned Plasma, also known as a Vampire Facial.

Vampire Facial

The effects of time on our skin are not kind: we develop lines and wrinkles, we lose volume, and our skin becomes more dull and dry. Thankfully, patients have the option of achieving major age-fighting results by combining Autologous Conditioned Plasma with microchanneling, in what is known as a “Vampire Facial.”

When you come to Plastic Surgery Specialists to receive your Microchanneling with Autologous Conditioned Plasma, we will draw a sample of your blood. The sample will be spun through a centrifuge to separate the healing components. Your protein-rich plasma, which will contain the cells and chemicals your body needs to heal, will be made into a potent serum.

After applying a topical anesthetic, we will use a Livra Microchanneling device to create small channels in your skin with minuscule, easily controlled micro-needles. These will create pathways, or microchannels, in your skin. The microchanneling will both stimulate collagen production in your skin and allow newer, healthier skin to reach the surface. The channels will communicate to the skin that it needs to heal while leaving the surrounding tissues untouched.

After your Livra Microchanneling is performed, the serum of your plasma will be applied to your skin. The healing serum is targeted to where it is most effective. The Autologous Conditioned Plasma will penetrate deeply into your skin, thanks to the pathways created by the microchanneling. In fact, this method has been shown to increase serum absorption by up to 300%.

Thanks to the growth factors within the Autologous Conditioned Plasma, patients’ skin will heal more quickly from its microchanneling, and scars and age spots will be less visible.

Autologous Conditioned Plasma, when incorporated into a skin rejuvenation procedure, will promote collagen production in a patient’s dermis. This will, over the weeks following your microchanneling, add more volume to the skin, which in turn will fill in fine lines and wrinkles. The skin will be stronger and healthier than before, therefore improving skin texture and tightness. Due to the fact that it will take time for the new collagen to reach the surface of the skin, it can take a few months before patients experience their final results.

If you are looking for a minimally-invasive way to restore a youthful glow and tighten your skin, call the Plastic Surgery Specialists to schedule your consultation for Microchanneling with Autologous Conditioned Plasma today.

Autologous Conditioned Plasma with Fillers

Patients who would like to boost volume and smooth wrinkles in a targeted area of their face have the option of receiving dermal fillers in addition to Autologous Conditioned Plasma. Dermal fillers are injectables such as Restylane, Juvederm, and Belotero. These are designed to add natural-looking volume to areas of the skin that have developed fine lines and wrinkles. Dermal fillers effectively smooth these wrinkles away. With the added boost of Autologous Conditioned Plasma, your skin will both create new collagen and regenerate more quickly, which will complement the contouring achieved with the fillers. As a result, skin looks more volumized and youthful.

Candidates

If you want tighter, healthier skin, Autologous Conditioned Plasma may be the perfect, minimally invasive boost your treatment needs. Ideal candidates for the benefits of Autologous Conditioned Plasma therapy are those who are non-smokers, not pregnant and do not have anemia or any other pre-existing condition which could interfere with your successful healing.

Microchanneling with Autologous Conditioned Plasma Therapy is not recommended for patients who have sensitive skin, low pain thresholds, or active cold sores.

Consultation

Our goal at Plastic Surgery Specialists is to give each patient the highest quality care possible. We invite patients who would like to know more about their skin rejuvenation options with Autologous Conditioned Plasma to schedule a complimentary consultation with us.

 

During your consultation, our highly trained nurses will go over your medical history with you, as well as go over your medication use, lifestyle habits, and goals for your appearance. If you are a good candidate for Autologous Conditioned Plasma therapy, your doctor will create a treatment plan that will achieve your best, desired results.

 

Autologous Conditioned Plasma improves both your rate of healing and the function of your skin and body overall. However, if your doctor believes you will achieve better results from an alternative treatment, they will discuss this option with you.

Preparation for Autologous Conditioned Plasma Treatment

Your doctor will give you individualized instructions about how to prepare for Autologous Conditioned Plasma therapy. You may be advised to quit smoking for at least three weeks, as well as to discontinue certain medications before your treatment can take place. If you have any questions regarding your treatment with platelet-rich plasma, please do not hesitate to call our office.

A Treatment with Autologous Conditioned Plasma

The first step of your Autologous Conditioned Plasma treatment will be a blood draw. Your blood will be safely processed through a two-step centrifuge, which will separate your plasma and platelets from your red and white blood cells. The Platelet Rich Plasma serum used in your treatment will be a potent source of valuable growth factors.

If you are receiving Autologous Conditioned Plasma as part of a skin rejuvenation procedure, the plasma will be administered to both boost the effects of your treatment and to stimulate new tissue and collagen growth in its own right. For example, Livra Microchanneling creates pathways for your dermis to renew itself with increased collagen production and skin healing. When applied, the growth factors present in the Autologous Conditioned Plasma will promote an impressive recovery in your skin function and improve the scale of your collagen production. Skin will become fuller, wrinkles will become tighter, and your topical skin will regenerate into a smoother, more even appearance.

Patients who are interested in the regenerative benefits of Autologous Conditioned Plasma can have Autologous Conditioned Plasma injected to help relieve their back pain, disc pain, and arthritis. The injection will encourage somatic cell proliferation, due to the growth factors in the Autologous Conditioned Plasma. This will enable your body to generate new, healthier tissue and to heal effectively.

Recovery & Results

While the results of your Autologous Conditioned Plasma therapy will depend on your body’s unique response to the Autologous Conditioned Plasma, as well as the particular treatment you have selected, patients repeatedly express surprise at the quality of their healing and health after incorporating Autologous Conditioned Plasma into their treatment.

Patients who receive Autologous Conditioned Plasma as part of a vampire facial are able to share their results within two days of their treatment and will continue to see their skin quality improve as their renewed collagen production works the fuller, smoother skin to the surface.

The results of a skin rejuvenation procedure with Autologous Conditioned Plasma can last for six months or as long as two years. Some patients may decide to receive 2 or 3 injections over a few months’ time to achieve their best results.

Cost

The price of your Autologous Conditioned Plasma treatment will depend on the details of the particular procedure that you and your doctor agree upon. Once you complete your consultation with Dr. Poulos or Dr. Hvistendahl you will receive a cost breakdown that reflects the details of your individualized treatment plan.

If you have questions about what Autologous Conditioned Plasma can do to revolutionize the function of your skin and body, we invite you to call Plastic Surgery Specialists today.

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