title: Platelet-rich plasma for long bone healing.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate effectiveness of the use of platelet-rich plasma as coadjuvant for union of long bones.
  
  
  METHODS
  The search strategy included the Cochrane Library (via Central) and MEDLINE (via PubMed). There were no limits as to language or publication media. The latest search strategy was conducted in December 2011. It included randomized clinical trials that evaluated the use of platelet-rich plasma as coadjuvant medication to accelerate union of long bones (acute fractures, pseudoarthrosis and bone defects). The outcomes of interest for this review include bone regeneration, adverse events, costs, pain, and quality of life. The authors selected eligible studies, evaluated the methodological quality, and extracted the data. It was not possible to perform quantitative analysis of the grouped studies (meta-analyses).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Two randomized prospective clinical trials were included, with a total of 148 participants. One of them compared recombinant human morphogenic bone protein-7 versus platelet-rich plasma for the treatment of pseudoarthrosis; the other evaluated the effects of three coadjuvant treatments for union of valgising tibial osteotomies (platelet-rich plasma, platelet-rich plasma plus bone marrow stromal cells, and no coadjuvant treatment). Both had low statistical power and moderate to high risk of bias.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  There was no conclusive evidence that sustained the use of platelet-rich plasma as a coadjuvant to aid bone regeneration of fractures, pseudoarthrosis, or bone defects.
authors.affiliation: Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein, São Paulo, SP, Brasil.
authors.forename: Mário
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lenza
authors.forename: Silvia de Barros
authors.initials: Sde B
authors.lastname: Ferraz
authors.forename: Dan Carai Maia
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: Viola
authors.forename: Oscar Fernando Pavão dos
authors.initials: OF
authors.lastname: Santos
authors.forename: Miguel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cendoroglo Neto
authors.forename: Mario
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ferretti
mesh_terms: D001861:Bone Regeneration / Q000502:physiology*; D017102:Fracture Healing / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D053657:Platelet-Rich Plasma; D011542:Pseudarthrosis / Q000628:therapy; D016896:Treatment Outcome