Platelet-rich plasma therapy is worth a trial in temporomandibular joint osteoarthritis suggests a new study published in the Journal of Cranio-Maxillofacial Surgery.
The study aimed to compare the efficacy of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections for the treatment of temporomandibular joint osteoarthritis (TMJ-OA) with hyaluronic acid (HA) therapy. This randomized controlled trial included 70 patients with temporomandibular joint-OA, randomly divided into either a Platelet-rich plasma or hyaluronic acid (HA) group. The pain intensity, maximum mouth opening (MMO), TMJ sound score, and proportion of crepitus were recorded and compared at baseline and at 1, 3, and 6 months. Both groups showed statistically significant improvements in pain intensity, MMO, TMJ sound, and scale scores during the 6-month follow-up period. The improvements in pain intensity during mouth opening at 1 month, MMO at 1, 3, and 6 months, temporomandibular joint sound score at 1 and 3 months, and GAD-7 score at 6 months in the PRP group were greater than in the HA group (p < 0.05). Compared with the HA group, imaging improvement in the PRP group was also higher (p < 0.05).

Researchers found that Platelet-rich plasma injection resulted in a more significant improvement in short-term (1 month) mouth opening pain compared with HA injection therapy, and in short-to-long-term maximum mouth opening.The repair effect of PRP injection therapy on the condylar bone was superior to that of HA. In addition, PRP injection therapy was conducive to alleviating anxiety in patients.
Within the limitations of the study it seems that the application of Platelet-rich plasma therapy in temporomandibular joint- osteoarthritis should be considered whenever possible.
Reference:
Sha-Sha Liu, Li-Li Xu, Li-Kun Liu, Shen-Ji Lu, Bin Cai. Platelet-rich plasma therapy for temporomandibular joint osteoarthritis: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Cranio-Maxillofacial Surgery, Volume 51, Issue 11, 2023, Pages 668-674, ISSN 1010-5182,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcms.2023.09.014
Keywords:
Platelet-rich, plasma, therapy, worth, trial, temporomandibular, joint osteoarthritis, Journal of Cranio-Maxillofacial Surgery, Platelet-rich plasma; Injection; Hyaluronic acid; Temporomandibular joint; Osteoarthritis