At Honour Health we are proud to continually develop our skills to offer our patients a variety of advanced techniques. PRGF (Plasma Rich in Growth Factor) is a therapeutic treatment option used in oral surgery and facial aesthetics. Dr Onkar Dhanoya has been using this technique for 10 years with excellent results when used in Implant surgery. 

PRGF was developed by Dr Eduardo Anitua at BTI Human Technology. In October 2023, the surgical team from Honour Health were fortunate enough to visit Dr Anitua’s Institute in Bilbao, Spain to learn all about BTI and PRGF. We are proud to offer our patients at Honour Health cutting edge treatments, from our growing team of dental surgeons. 

Honour Health visits BTI

Our visit in October 2023 involved an intensive two days learning all things PRGF and BTI implants!

On the first day we were shown first-hand, via live surgery, how PRGF can be utilised during implant placement to aid with the healing process, leading to reduced post-operative symptoms. On day two we had a hands on course on how to prepare and use PRGF so we are able to put this to use at Honour Health.

Of course, we couldn’t visit Bilbao without seeing some of the sights as well. We spent the weekend prior to the course exploring the city. We visited the Old Town of Bilbao, toured the famous Guggenheim museum and tried many local pinxos (small plates).

We came back full of knowledge and eager to implement what we have learned to improve our patient treatment at Honour Health.

What is BTI?

BTI is a biotechnology company which focuses on Oral Implantology and Regenerative medicine and is run by Dr Eduardo Anitua. Regenerative medicine is a branch of medicine which seeks to develop the tools that can help repair or replace damaged cells or tissues to their normal function. BTI is an international benchmark in Regenerative Medicine thanks to its intense research work on plasma rich in growth factors (PRGF).

BTI also produce their own implants, which Dr Dhanoya has been using for the past 7 years. During or team’s visit to the headquarters, they were shown the vast amount of research and evidence-base behind the use of BTI Implants. BTI implants hold a ‘Clean Implant’ certificate which is only awarded to those implants of the highest quality. This allows us to utilise BTI implants at Honour Health with full confidence that they are of the highest quality for our patients, minimising risk of failure and peri-implantitis.

What is PRGF?

Plasma Rich Growth Factors (PRGF) uses the patient’s own blood plasma to help stimulate the healing and regeneration response from the body. This can be used following certain procedures such as tooth extraction or implant placement. Dr Anitua has spent years researching it’s use within Dentistry and multiple studies have shown its efficacy in:

– Reduced post operative pain

– Reduced inflammation following treatment

– Accelerating hard and soft tissue healing

– Achieving higher bone volume in bone grafting procedures compared to other formulations

 

What is involved in PRGF treatment?

A small volume of the patients’ blood is collected prior to treatment and placed in a state-of-the-art centrifuge which separates the plasma rich in growth factors (PRGF). This plasma can then be prepared in various ways depending on what it is to be used for. The PRGF can be placed over a wound following treatment which can then result in faster tissue regrowth with less post operative pain. PRGF can be used as a membrane following dental extractions to help speed up quality bony healing, as well as improve the health of the bone.

 

Am I suitable for this treatment?

The use of PRGF is a safe and straightforward technique utilising the patient’s own blood, which means there is no risk of patient rejection. PRGF eliminates the need for use of synthetic bone in grafts, and has been shown to be superior to other grafting materials. There are very few contraindications to its use, however patients who have a history of a blood clotting disorder are unsuitable for PRGF treatment.

PRGF can be used in treatments which require wound healing such as:

– Implant placement

– Tooth extraction

– Periodontal surgery

 

If you are about to undertake any of the above treatments and would like to know how PRGF could be used to improve your healing please speak to your dentist.

 

Blog written by : Dr Andrew Barr.