In the late 2000s, Tiger Woods was a big deal. He had already won the Masters four times, the PGA Championship four times, the U.S. Open three times, and the Open Championship three times. He was the PGA Player of the Year every year from 1999 to 2009 (except 2004 and 2008), so he loomed large over the sport. Needless to say, when it became public knowledge that platelet-rich plasma (PRP) was the secret to his speedy recovery from a torn ACL, the biomedical industry went wild.
Commercial interests quickly co-opted the conversation, drowning out the voices of clinicians and researchers like Drs Arun Garg and Robert E. Marx—the co-discoverers of PRP—who did not want to see this low-cost technology exploited by profit-hungry manufacturers of centrifuge devices. There was also an enormous amount of misinformation being promulgated by certain medical/dental experts who recognized the enormous therapeutic potential of autologous growth factors and seized the opportunity to establish a name for themselves in the scientific community. The medical literature became saturated with articles introducing new terminology to describe slightly modified growth factor compositions, often without much (if any) additional clinical benefit. The result was an alarming lack of standardization in protocols, a nomenclature best described as an alphabet soup of acronyms, and an overwhelming sense of confusion among clinicians. That’s why Dr Arun Garg published the first edition of this book back in 2015, to set the record straight.
Above all, he wanted to refocus the conversation about platelet-derived therapies in order to make PRP accessible again to the practicing clinician. He purposefully titled the book Autologous Blood Concentrates instead of PRP or PRF as a way to signal his desire to focus on the science and not the politics swirling around it. He wanted the book to reach clinicians regardless of which machine or nomenclature they were most familiar with. For Dr Garg, it was all about making this low-cost technology accessible and useful to clinicians to better their patients’ outcomes and lives. Everything else was secondary.
In the 6 years since that edition was published, much has changed in the world of regenerative biotechnology. Protocols have been perfected, new formulations have been developed, and more applications have been discovered for its use. This time around, Dr Garg again wants to make sure every clinician has access to information that is easy to digest and easy to apply. The book is thereby a roadmap to incorporating autologous blood concentrates into clinical practice. The centerpiece of the new edition is a completely new chapter that details the step-by-step formulas and processes for preparing eight configurations of PRP and the specific indications for using each one.
How and when to apply the various configurations in clinical dentistry—for soft tissue preservation, hard tissue preservation and regeneration, and facial rejuvenation procedures—is the subject of subsequent chapters. Because the use of PRP requires the clinician or an assistant to perform a venipuncture, the final chapter is a comprehensive guide to the principles and practice of phlebotomy.
There are a plethora of articles and books out there on PRP, PRF, or whatever else the author chooses to call the centrifuged blood product. Dr Garg’s book is the perfect balance of science and clinical application, specifically written for clinicians interested in adopting this technology for the benefit of their patients. It outlines the science you need to know, how to actually fabricate the right blood products for the right clinical indication, and then of course how to use them once you have them. No other book on the subject strips it down to this level and goes for maximum clinical impact. There are some other excellent books on this topic, some of them published by us, but if you are a clinician just starting out with PRP who doesn’t want to wade through all the research, this is your best bet.
Arun K. Garg, DMD, served as a full-time professor of surgery and director of residency training in the Division of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery at the University of Miami School of Medicine for nearly 20 years. He has authored more than 8 textbooks and over 150 scientific journal articles and trained thousands of dentists and dental specialists over the course of his career. He is the founder of Implant Seminars, a leading dental education company, and the Garg Foundation in the Dominican Republic, which offers state-of-the-art dental treatment to the community free of charge. In addition, he maintains several private practices throughout South Florida.
Autologous Blood Concentrates, Second Edition
Arun K. Garg
Since its discovery over two decades ago, platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and its derivatives have become a mainstay in oral and maxillofacial surgery and, more recently, in other dental specialties as well. As technology continues to allow significant innovation in this field, more and more formulations and products are being discovered and marketed to dentists. In the second edition of this bestselling book, Dr Garg rejects the salesmanship that often swirls around PRP and instead focuses on the science, biology, and clinical applications of this natural biomaterial. Credited as a co-discoverer of PRP, he knows how to break down the science and explain how autologous blood concentrates work to speed healing and promote tissue regeneration. This natural, inexpensive, and safe material has enormous potential in a dental clinic, and Dr Garg wants to make sure every clinician has access to information that is easy to digest and easy to apply. This book is thereby a roadmap to incorporating autologous blood concentrates into clinical practice. The early chapters focus on the biology of what goes on when blood is collected and centrifuged and reintroduced into wound sites as well as how to prepare the different formulations of autologous blood concentrates. The later chapters demonstrate how to use this material in implant surgery, soft and hard tissue healing, facial cosmetics, and other clinical applications to achieve superb outcomes. With a bonus chapter on phlebotomy, this book is the practical manual novices need and experienced clinicians value.
184 pp; 520 illus; ©2022; ISBN 978-1-64724-083-7 (B0837); US $96 (preorder)