Bone Healing with PRP Derived from Bone Marrow Aspirate

Objectives: This study histomorphometrically evaluated the bony healing of surgically created critical-size defects (CSD) in rat calvaria treated with Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) derived from either peripheral blood (PB) or bone marrow aspirate (BMA). Methods: 30 rats were divided into 3 groups: Group C (control), Group PRP-pb (Platelet-Rich Plasma derived from peripheral blood) and Group PRP-bma (Platelet-Rich Plasma derived from bone marrow aspirate). A 5 mm diameter CSD was created in the calvarium of each animal. In Group C, the defect was filled with blood clot only. In groups PRP-pb and PRP-bma, the defects were filled with PRP derived from PB and BMA, respectively. All animals were euthanized at 30 days post-operatively. Histometric, using image analysis software, and histologic analyses were performed. Newly Formed Bone Area (NFBA) was calculated as a percentage of the total area of the original defect. Percentage data were transformed into arccosine for statistical analysis (ANOVA, Bonferroni post hoc, p<0.05). Results: Group C presented significantly less bone formation (12.34 ± 2.51%) than either group PRP-pb (31.48 ± 14.05%) or PRP-bma (35.38 ± 17.19%). No statistically significant differences were observed between groups PRP-pb and PRP-bma. Conclusion: Within the limits of this study, it can be concluded that both PRP-pb and PRP-bma significantly enhanced bone healing in critical-size defects in rat calvaria. One of the co-authors received a scholarship from FAPESP (Proc. 08/52602-6).