Jonathan
Bornstein has emerged as one of the best young soccer players in the country;
he was named rookie of the year in Major League Soccer. But everything changed
this spring when he twisted his knee in practice.
"I
knew something was wrong, and I knew that I was going to have to take some time
to heal," Bornstein says.
Bornstein
had suffered a torn ligament in his knee. He would be out of action for six to
10 weeks, CBS News medical correspondent Dr. Jon LaPook reports.
"I was
pretty bummed to find out I might be missing the first game, maybe a couple
more games," Bornstein says. "I didn't really think there was much I
could do to get back earlier."
But Dr.
Michael Gearhart did. A leading sports medicine expert, he believes we can
speed up the body's ability to heal itself with a remarkably simple technique.
It's called
Platelet Rich Plasma therapy — or PRP. Doctors spin a few tablespoons of a
patient's own blood, separating out the platelets.
Normally,
platelets help the blood to clot — but they also promote healing. With PRP,
this concentration of platelets is injected directly into the injury — in
Bornstein's case, his knee.
"Platelets
are an amazing substance. They are packed full of growth factors, of healing
factors, and when given into a specific area, you get a hyper-healing
response," Gearhart says.
Bornstein
was thrilled to get back on the field quickly.
"I was
back running in around three weeks, and I was ready to play in about 4 1/2.
five (weeks)," he says.
Doctor are
taking the first steps to move this treatment beyond the world of the elite
athlete. The hope is that the same technology that allowed Bornstein to get
back on the field so quickly can now be used to treat injuries in weekend
warriors as well.
Anosheh
Emery is trying PRP as a last resort to help his chronic tennis elbow and
painful knee tendinitis. He is one of the few patients to get it so far —
clinical trials are now testing PRP's safety and effectiveness. Side effects
reportedly have been minor; it seems like the biggest problem so far: The
needles hurt.
"It's
painful, but its nothing you can't bear," Emery says. But was the pain
worth it? "Oh, definitely. They say, 'no pain, no gain.' I definitely had
some pain, and there was a lot of gain."
The hope is
that if PRP can get an elite athlete like Bornstein up and running, it can help
the baby boom generation and their creaky joints get back in the game.
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