Photo by Leon Halip | Getty Images

Yankees Third Baseman, Alex Rodriguez, recently talked to reporters about having Orthokine therapy performed in Germany, on his right knee and left shoulder, during the off-season.

Rodriguez, had the same procedure that Kobe Bryant had on his right knee during the NBA off-season.

While bring asked what advice Bryant gave him about the procedure, Rodriguez mentioned that Kobe was in so much pain that he thought about retirement:

[Kobe Bryant] was really adamant about how great the procedure was for him,” Rodriguez said. “I know that he was hurting before, almost even thinking about retirement, that’s how much pain he was under. And then he said after he went to Germany, and saw Dr.Peters, he felt like a 27-year-old again. Now the thing is if I can play as good as Kobe, then we’re in business.”

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So what exactly is Orthokine therapy, or PRP, and why is it the hot new procedure for players like Kobe, and A-Rod?

Dr. Bal Raj. A board certified Orthopedic Surgeon in Beverly Hills, specializing in sports & fitness procedures explains:

When [Kobe] went to Germany, he actually went to have PRP done. P stands for platelets, it’s derived from your own blood. After filtering your own blood, you take cells out and the plasma out and you have platelets remaining. The advantage of these platelets is that they are highly concentrated, about 10x the concentration of what is in your normal blood. They can be injected directly into damaged areas and [the platelets] catalyze the growth of normal and new tissue. Blood platelets contain what we call potent globe factors which are necessary to begin tissue repair and regenerate at our injury site.