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Platelet-rich plasma and the shoulder: clinical indications and outcomes

  • Protein-Rich Plasma: From Bench to Treatment of Arthritis (S Choate and J Tokish, section editors)
  • Published:
Current Reviews in Musculoskeletal Medicine Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose of Review

The orthopedic community has seen a rapid rise in the clinical use of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) in the management of shoulder pathologies over the past decade. The purpose of this paper is to review the current literature regarding the indications and outcomes of PRP for the surgical and non-surgical management of common shoulder pathologies, including rotator cuff tears.

Recent Findings

Multiple studies have been published recently regarding the use of PRP for the operative and non-operative treatment of rotator cuff tears. There has been less research published on the use of PRP in the management of other conditions of the shoulder. Despite attempts to standardize and classify PRP formulations, there remains great variation in the inter- and intra-subjection composition, preparation, and administration techniques of PRP, limiting the conclusions that can be drawn regarding the utility and effectiveness of this biologic treatment as reported by Mazzocca et al. (J Bone Joint Surg Am. 94(4):308–16, 2012).

Summary

Recent literature has shown equivocal to minor benefit of PRP use for shoulder pain, function, and healing. While few complications have been reported and PRP administration appears to carry little risk to the patient, the body of literature is currently inconclusive regarding the clinical benefit and cost-effectiveness of PRP in the treatment of shoulder pathology. As for PRP use specifically as an adjunct to surgical rotator cuff repairs, there is no clear consensus on its effectiveness in either clinical or structural outcomes. To further delineate the efficacy of PRP for shoulder pathology, it is essential that more double-blinded, randomized controlled investigations with large sample sizes and standardized PRP preparations be performed.

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Papers of particular interest, published recently, have been highlighted as: • Of importance

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Shoulder and Elbow Surgery, Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Rehabilitation, Loyola University Hospital System, 2160 South 1St Ave., Maywood, IL, 60153, USA

    Andrew Schneider, Rebecca Burr, Nickolas Garbis & Dane Salazar

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  1. Andrew Schneider
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  2. Rebecca Burr
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  3. Nickolas Garbis
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  4. Dane Salazar
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Correspondence to Dane Salazar.

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Dr. Garbis reports non-financial support from Wright Medical, outside the submitted work. Other authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Protein-Rich Plasma: From Bench to Treatment of Arthritis

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Schneider, A., Burr, R., Garbis, N. et al. Platelet-rich plasma and the shoulder: clinical indications and outcomes. Curr Rev Musculoskelet Med 11, 593–597 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12178-018-9517-9

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