Is Your Blood The Secret To Youthful Skin?

Thanks to Kim Kardashian West and the powers of social media, chances are you’ve already heard of the Vampire Facial, you may have been brave enough to try it.

Known in the industry as PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma) treatment, the vampire facial has been around for many a year. Starting life as a medical treatment to speed up the healing process post surgery, it soon made its mark on the dental world, thanks to it’s amazing healing effect on dental implants, before making its way into the aesthetics industry. 

Then in 2013, Kim KW posted a selfie of her blood-strewn face on Instagram and the rest is as they say is history. PRP aka the Vampire Facial officially became the aesthetics industry’s must have treatment.

The problem is, is that regardless of how much ‘Insta’ love the treatment received, it doesn’t change the fact that results are often variable  (a side effect of having to rely on both a patients health and genetics for results). On top of that, many patients find the application process of injection simply too painful, as Kim KW too later claimed.

Of course science doesn’t sit still for long, especially when it’s comes to using our own stem cells to heal! Step up PRGF (Platelet Rich Growth Factors) advanced rejuvenating treatment.  Considered to be the improved version of PRP (or as we like to think of it, the vampire’s facials bigger stronger brother), PRGF is essentially the same treatment; A concentrated form of your own growth factor-rich blood plasma is injected in to the skin to stimulate skin cell regeneration.  Where it varies is down to the nature of how it is centrifuged and divided.

Using the Endoret Centrifuge, ‘growth factors’ from a small sample of your blood are isolated, concentrated and extracted in a matter of minutes. These ‘growth factors’ are then administered via mutiple micro-injections using a mesotherapy gun, making the process significantly less painful than the traditional injections. What’s more, the actual plasma injected is considered to be a lot more concentrated in growth factors and other proteins, than in the plasma extracted during PRP. It also lacks any leucocytes, which in turn reduces or removes any inflammatory responses from the skin. While the micro trauma recieved from the mesotherapy gun further promotes the production of collagen. 

 But enough of the science, what are the aesthetic benefits of PRGF and can anyone get it done?  

The list of benefits really lists like the holy grail of aesthetics; from slowing down the ageing process to reducing acne scars, plumping and hydrating the skin, minimising fine lines and improving skin laxity. PRGF has even been shown to help with rosacea, a notoriously tricky skin condition to treat. 

 And because PRGF is completely autologous, utilising your very own ‘growth factors’, it doesn’t trigger the body’s immune response, making it suitable for just about anyone. In fact the only people it is deemed unsuitable for is patients with bleeding disorders, due to the nature of the treatment. Which means, all you lovely pregnant ladies, this ones for you too! (just be aware that if you are suffering from any melasma, it could further exacerbate it)

Already a huge fan of PRP, I booked in with Dr Sepi at Medicetics, to find out if PRGF really is all it’s cracked up to be.

To begin with PRGF starts out in exactly the same way as my previous PRP experiences. My face is thoroughly cleansed and sterilised, before three vials of my blood are drawn (painlessly I might add thanks to Dr Sepi’s skills with the needle) and placed in to the centrifuge. And thats where the similarity ends. 

Previously, I have had to wait up to twenty minutes for the centrifuge to do its thing however with the Endoret, my ‘growth factor’ plasma was ready in a matter of minutes. 

Next up, Dr Sepi places the plasma in the mesotherapy gun and gets to work creating micro channels so the all important plasma can penetrate my skin. Although a little uncomfortable, the procedure by no means painful and significantly less so than the injections used in PRP. 

The whole procedure takes around fifteen minutes and is followed up with a facemask, which Dr Sepi creates out of guase saturated with the remainig plasma, to ensure that non of the good stuff is wasted. Another ten minutes relacing with the mask and   I am cleaned up and ready to leave. Apart from a slightly red face a few pin prick marks, there are no obviouse signs of what I have just had done. Before I leave I am told to keep out of the sun, stay away from AHA’s for the next week and return for my second treatment in four weeks time. 

Three months on from my third and final PRGF treatment, what’s the verdict? While my skin texture and firmness has visibly improved, what’s really been a game changer is the dramatic reduction of fine lines around my eyes, gained from too many sleepless nights (yes kids, I am blaming you), something very few non surgical treatments are able to tackle.

100% natural, no down time, zero immune response and results that can’t be denied.  Dr Sepi you shall be seeing me again soon!

To book your consultation at Medicetics visit medicetics.com