The O-Shot®
Sexual Rejuvenation for Women
Performed by Dr. Karen Bravo of KB Holistic
Licensed, Trained and Certified by the
American Cosmetic Cellular Association
O-Shot ®/ the Orgasm Shot ®
Why the O-Shot®? It’s estimated that 50% of adult women suffer some form of sexual dysfunction. This can range from low libido to painful intercourse. It Is also estimated that approximately one in three women are unable to experience orgasms. As many women experience urinary incontinence, causing embarrassment, psychological distress and significant life alteration.
Most women are reluctant to discuss these types of intimate concerns with their physicians. Moreover, many clinicians are uncomfortable with and unprepared to discuss these types of problems with their patients. Further, there are few options available to effectively address this very common problem. As a result, many of these patients suffer in silence while their intimate relationships are strained.
Recent developments have led to an exciting in-office procedure which promises new hope for women with sexual dysfunction and it is based upon harnessing the individual’s natural healing and regenerative power found within their own blood!
Enter Platelet Rich Plasma
You may have heard of red blood cells which carry oxygen to the tissues and white blood cells which form part of the immune system, but then there are the platelets, little disc-like particles that you may have heard are involved in the clotting of blood, but they do so much more!
Remember scraping your knee as a child and forming a big scab? You may have lifted the edge and a little bit of gooey yellow liquid oozed out. That’s plasma loaded with platelets, proteins and cells that are doing the healing!
Platelets normally float around in your blood vessels until there is injury causing leakage of blood cells, platelets and plasma fluid from the broken blood vessel into the surrounding tissues. The job of the platelets is to sense this injury, become activated and immediately release packets of potent chemical growth factors which in turn call upon other cells into the area. These cells respond with yet other chemical messages and a chain reaction of biological events is set in motion. The influx of cells includes those that form capillaries, white blood cells that direct demolition, connective tissue for repair and structural support and stem cells, which can change into whatever tissue is required, to name a few.
It’s Like a Biological Home Make Over
In this way platelets function like foremen at a construction site, initiating the simultaneous demolition and rebuilding of the tissues into which they are deposited. Once initiated, the process is like a biological home maker-over. Now, imagine a super-rich concentrate of platelets, PLATELET RICH PLASMA (PRP) injected into tissues that are not damaged per se. The local tissues undergo a significant upgrade!
The chemical exchange leads to an increase in blood flow to the local tissues delivering vital oxygen and nutrients necessary to fuel the newly bustling local tissue economy. There is growth and thickening in the delicate connective supporting tissues (collagen) which likely has much to do with rejuvenation of the nearby urethral tissues. Most notably, improvements are also experienced in nerve tissue leading to increased sensitivity and the name, the O-Shot®, coined by Dr. Charles Runels, the inventor of the particular PRP procedure technique.
The O-SHOT® Begins With a Simple Blood Draw
Through a simple blood draw the healing and rejuvenating potential of PRP can be extracted and directed via skillful injection into the tissues of concern; in this case the female anatomy involved with sensitivity, orgasm and the closely associated urethral tissues.
Patients who receive PRP via the O-Shot® will experience improved arousal and sensitivity so pivotal to improving sexual relations. They will also notice improved physiological response to stimulation with increased intensity of orgasm and decreased time to achieve orgasm. Additionally, with the O-Shot® there is improvement, sometimes dramatically, in urinary incontinence symptoms, also very common in adult women.
The Effects of the O-SHOT® are Long Lasting
The effects of PRP via the O-Shot® can begin immediately and are long lasting, ramping up over approximately 3 weeks and peaking at about 6 months. Each patient will have a unique experience, but the effects can last up to 1 to 1 1/2 yrs. Depending on the amount and severity of the underlying problems, some women will benefit from a second procedure 4-8 weeks after the first.
Please note, the regenerative powers of PRP have been known and used successfully in medicine for decades in the areas of wound healing, sports injuries and dentistry. More recently, it has been used in general surgery, aesthetics and now for female and (male) sexual dysfunction.
Most Women are Candidates for O-SHOT®
Most women are candidates for the O-Shot® for sexual rejuvenation. In the right hands, the procedure is easy, short and very safe. There is almost no chance of reacting negatively toward your own blood. There is little preparation. It is recommended to avoid nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications for the week preceding the procedure which would shut down platelet mediated healing effects (release of growth factors). You are fully awake during the procedure.
The O-SHOT® is Relatively Fast, Safe, with no Down-Time!
First, a strong topical numbing cream is applied to the tissues. Then about 2 Tbsps. of blood are drawn from an arm vein into a syringe into which a small amount of approved blood thinner has been added. The blood is then placed in an FDA approved centrifuge for PRP procedures and spun into predictable layers. The platelets can then be separated and are immediately ready for use.
Sterile prep is applied to the numbed tissues followed by a tiny nerve block. Most women feel little to no discomfort during the procedure. There are no restrictions afterword; you can return to all of your prior activities!
Some may undergo subsequent injections in order to reach the desired outcome. This may be important with some women who have a scar-like condition known as lichen sclerosis, for which PRP via the O-Shot® is showing significant results.
Many women will get a follow up procedure about once a year in order to maintain the effects.
In Consideration of the Whole Patient
Remember, as the rejuvenation is working in one direction, aging, dietary habits and indiscretions, medications and other factors are working in the other. This is why it is important to address hormonal imbalances, metabolic issues (like diabetes, high blood pressure), diet and lifestyle changes which will have bearing upon the regeneration of tissue. Sometimes emotional issues must be addressed and appropriately treated simultaneously.
Some women will also benefit from regular pelvic exercise with a pelvic stimulator which enhances pelvic blood flow and intensity of muscular contraction and orgasm. We have well-designed devices for this purpose.
It is important to undergo the procedure by a skilled practitioner who only uses FDA approved equipment and is capable of addressing the whole patient to optimize outcome. At KB Holistic our procedures are being performed by Karen Levy, MD, a Board CertifiedRadiologist with decades of experience in interventional procedures, trained and certified by the American Cosmetic Cellular Association to perform the well-known O-Shot® for women. Dr. Levy has a particular delicate skill in her procedures and has a remarkable ability to put her patients at ease.