PRP & PRFFor your skin.

Fine lines, crepiness and changes in colour or contour can have different causes. The assessment needs to distinguish a skin-texture concern from pigment, visible vessels, hollowing, fluid, laxity or scarring. That helps establish whether PRP or PRF could address what you notice.

PRP and PRF are considered for skin texture and fine lines. Marked hollowing, lost facial support, significant laxity or an eyelid bag need a different approach. Pigment, deep lines, tethered scars and active skin disease also need assessment in their own right. The alternatives section explains which other options may be relevant.

A platelet-based preparation, not one standardised product.

PRP contains growth factors, including PDGF, VEGF, TGF-β, IGF-1 and EGF. These are signalling proteins involved in tissue repair and cell activity. In laboratory studies, activated PRP has stimulated dermal fibroblasts, the cells that produce collagen and other components of the skin’s supporting tissue. A change in cells in a laboratory does not establish how much smoother the treated skin will look. [6]^[source]

A plausible mechanism is not the same as a guaranteed visible result. PRP systems, concentrations and protocols vary. That variation is one reason the studies cannot be read as though every treatment called PRP is identical.

Related to PRP, but not interchangeable with it.

Both are prepared from a sample of your blood. A centrifuge separates the components so that the platelet-containing portion can be collected.

PRP is usually prepared with an anticoagulant, which helps keep it liquid. PRF is prepared without an anticoagulant, allowing fibrin — the protein mesh involved in clotting — to form. Injectable PRF is collected while it is still liquid and is used before that mesh fully forms.

The preparation changes which cells and proteins are present and how they are released. Laboratory studies have found different release patterns, but a slower release does not by itself prove a better result for your skin or hair.^[source]

I explain the particular preparation I recommend, how I use it and why it fits the area we agree to treat. PRF systems and protocols differ; the name alone does not establish its composition, release pattern or an advantage over PRP.

Possible improvement. Usually modest. Not consistently objective.

PRP has been studied for facial texture, fine lines and photoaged skin. Some participants report improvement. Some clinical assessments also show change. The overall literature remains difficult to compare because preparations, treatment schedules, combinations and outcome measures differ.

One small placebo-controlled facial trial found that participants noticed better texture and wrinkles on the PRP-treated side, while masked dermatologists did not find a statistically significant overall difference. This difference is useful to discuss when considering the likely benefit.

For selected facial skin-quality concerns, PRP may improve texture or fine lines. The evidence does not give a fixed percentage, or tell you how much change you would notice. Not everyone will feel that the improvement is enough to make treatment worthwhile.

First decide whether the problem is skin, pigment, shadow, hollowing, fluid or laxity.

The under-eye area is where one word — "tired" — can hide several different causes. Fine skin and crepiness may be a skin-quality concern. A shadow may come from hollowing. Puffiness may be fluid or fat. Dark colour may be pigment, visible vessels or the way light falls across the anatomy.

PRP reviews report improved patient satisfaction in periorbital studies, but the pooled evidence is heterogeneous and does not promise a particular magnitude for one person's under-eye.

PRF has also been studied in this area. The evidence is smaller. Current reviews do not establish a universal winner, and that must not be translated into a claim that the two preparations are equivalent.

Neither PRP nor PRF should be sold as a reliable correction for marked hollowing, excess eyelid skin or a prominent eyelid bag.

Fine lines, skin texture and loose skin on the neck need different assessments. Evidence from facial treatment does not establish the same result on the neck. The recommendation depends on the change you want and what the evidence supports for that area.

Suitability is wider than the skin in front of me.

A platelet-based treatment begins with blood collection, so suitability includes more than the appearance of the treatment area. Relevant health conditions, medicines and supplements, bleeding or bruising tendency, previous difficulty with blood draws and the ability to obtain a suitable sample all need to be considered.

You should never stop prescribed medicine to prepare for an aesthetic procedure. If a medicine creates a clinical question, that question is reviewed rather than bypassed.

Suitability is individual. The reasons to postpone or avoid treatment depend on the preparation, your health, the area and the clinical plan, and are discussed during assessment.

The assessment is not a formality before treatment.

I assess the concern, the area, your medical history, current medicines, previous treatment and what level of change would feel worthwhile to you. I also consider whether the evidence shown on this page actually applies to the objective being discussed.

The consultation may lead to PRP, PRF, another treatment, further information first or no treatment. You should leave understanding the options and why I recommend them.

Your blood is not a factory-made product.

Biological variation is real. So is protocol variation. Baseline skin, health, medicines, smoking, ultraviolet exposure, inflammation, platelet biology, the preparation used, the area treated and the method of outcome assessment can all affect what is seen.

We use your starting point and photographs to judge the response to your own treatment.

Your own blood does not make the procedure risk-free.

The blood draw and injections can cause infection, bleeding or a haematoma, fainting or a vasovagal response, and an unsatisfactory result. Complications also depend on the area being treated.

Serious visual complications after facial PRP injections have been reported. The reports do not establish reliable frequencies for every preparation, area or protocol. [8]

Read the symptoms that need urgent help and what to do.

Alternatives depend on the cause. They may include skincare, microneedling, peels or other resurfacing, skin boosters, polynucleotides, collagen biostimulators, dermal fillers, an energy-based route, surgical or oculoplastic assessment, medical assessment, or simply waiting.