Considering PRP At A Big Academic Center Like OHSU? Think Again

Samuel G Oltman, ND, RMSK

Big academic medical centers like Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) in Portland are on the cutting edge of many areas in medicine. The sheer amount of brain power and funding behind them is staggering. My own mother gets care at the Knight Cancer Center and could not be happier with it (including the Naturopathic Doctor and Acupuncturist she sees there). But this doesn’t mean they are on the cutting edge of everything, especially areas outside of drug and surgery treatments. Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) injections are a great example of this and why you should seek care outside the system to get the best service.  

*This argument could be applied to all the big medical systems including Providence, Legacy, Kaiser, and big Orthopedic clinics. 

Why Most Kits Are Bad Practice

OHSU uses BTC kits by RegenKit. They use a small blood draw and advertise a multiplier factor of 1.6-5.9x. This is bad and not up to current standards. We make PRP that is at least 9-12x, and can modify our processing to make it 20x or more if needed. You could be getting diluted plasma injections that are only two times your baseline platelet count at OHSU. Then when it doesn’t work, they’ll say “see, PRP is experimental and doesn’t work, let’s do cortisone”, when in reality you never got the real thing to begin with. And OHSU doesn’t know because they don’t test the platelet count. 

The Importance Of Testing Platelet Count 

OHSU doesn’t test platelet counts on their PRP so they don’t actually know what they’re injecting with each treatment. They are just trusting the kit salesperson. This is not best-practice. The evidence-based approach is what we do at Cascade Regenerative Medicine by testing and confirming every batch of PRP that we make. This allows us to track outcomes in relation to the platelet count of the PRP and acts as a continuous quality control so there is no need to “trust the process”-- we know exactly what we inject. 

An Appeal To “Follow The Old Algorithm” Logic

Skepticism of clinics like ours that work outside the system is expected. But we’re the ones actually moving the field forward by being nimble enough to evolve our protocols as the evidence changes. OHSU will take 20 years before they catch up as evidenced in many studies on the slow change of medical practice. We we are single-mindedly focused every day on regenerative therapies and how to get the best results for every patient. And we’re adaptable enough to change as the best protocols evolve. 

Ultrasound Expertise

OHSU will disparage my training but not a single doctor there has the RMSK certification that I have. Utilizing ultrasound as both a diagnostic tool and for injection guidance is part of what every patient gets at Cascade Regenerative Medicine. You don't need a separate appointment or for it to be approved by your insurance. It goes beyond making the best PRP and extends into ensuring that the PRP is placed precisely into the areas that need to heal.

Quality Over Quantity

At OHSU you pay $500 for the “McDonalds” version of PRP. At Cascade Regenerative Medicine you pay $800 for the “artisanal farm to table feast” version of PRP. It is quality over quantity. The end result is undeniably superior and is actually in line with current evidence. 

I have a lot of patients that have seen me after getting treatment at OHSU or another large hospital system and they all report a night and day difference between their experience there and at Cascade Regenerative Medicine. It is our focus and our dedication to the craft that shows through in obvious ways. Know when to look for answers outside the system and see the difference at Cascade Regenerative Medicine today.