Treatments
PRP vs stem cells from your blood: what Seoul clinics actually prepare
Treatments made from your own blood in Korean clinics are not all the same thing. Most start the same way, with blood drawn and spun in a centrifuge. What is then injected can be platelet-rich plasma (PRP), which is not a stem cell treatment, or a preparation the clinic describes as containing cells. Before you book, ask exactly what is in the syringe or drip, whether anything is cultured, and under which Korean approval it is given.
What readers ask
“A Seoul clinic offers a 'blood stem cell' drip. Is that the same as PRP?”
“The menu lists 60 cc and 120 cc. Does a bigger number mean more stem cells?”
What does 'blood stem cell' mean in English?
In English medical writing, 'blood stem cells' usually means the stem cells in your bone marrow that give rise to all of your blood cells. These are the cells replaced in a bone marrow or stem cell transplant (MedlinePlus, U.S. National Library of Medicine). So when a clinic menu in Seoul says 'blood stem cell', ask what is meant. It may describe PRP, a concentrate of white blood cells, or another preparation.
How is PRP different from a cell preparation?
PRP is prepared from your own blood. Its use rests on platelet growth factors, which take part in the body's wound-healing process (Everts et al., International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 2020). A cell preparation is a different product: the clinic separates or concentrates cells, and some processes culture them. The two start from the same blood draw, so the menu name alone will not tell you which one you are getting.
| PRP (platelet-rich plasma) | Cell preparation from blood | |
|---|---|---|
| What is drawn | Your blood | Your blood |
| What is separated | Plasma with platelets | Depends on the clinic's process |
| Cultured? | No | Ask. Culturing falls under stricter Korean rules |
| How it is given | Injection into skin, scalp or a joint | Injection or intravenous drip, depending on the clinic |
| Key question | Which kit, and how many sessions? | What exactly is in the final product, and under which approval? |
Does the cc number on a menu tell you the dose?
No. Some Seoul menus list options by the amount of blood drawn, for example 60 cc or 120 cc. That is the volume collected from you, not the amount of cells that goes back in. Ask the clinic what the final preparation contains and how they measure it.
““The 120 cc option costs more. Does that mean twice as many stem cells?””
Not necessarily. More blood drawn can mean more starting material, but what reaches you depends on how it is processed. Ask for the final product to be described in writing.
Injection or drip: what changes?
An injection goes into a specific area such as the skin, scalp or a joint. A drip goes into a vein and through the whole body. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration warns consumers about unapproved regenerative medicine products, including stem cell and exosome products, and asks people to check what they are being offered. For a drip, ask what is in the bag, who prepares it, what checks are done, and what happens if you react during or after it.
Which questions should you bring to the consultation?
- 01
What goes in
Is it PRP, a cell preparation, or something else? Ask for the product to be named in writing.
- 02
Processing
Is anything cultured or stored? Where, and by whom?
- 03
Route
Injection or drip? Into which area?
- 04
People
Who prepares it, and which doctor gives it?
- 05
Risks and alternatives
What are the risks for you, and what else could you do instead?
- 06
Written quote
Does it include the consultation, blood tests, preparation, the procedure and follow-up?
COMEDI works with Cell365 Well Clinic in Sinsa, an orthopaedic and rehabilitation clinic with what it calls a stem cell centre. Its menu includes treatments prepared from the patient's own blood. We ask the clinic the questions above in writing before you travel.
Send us your questions and dates. We get the clinic's written answers on what is injected, how, and the total, before you book.
Contact COMEDIProducts, studies and their limits
Product information, human studies, preclinical work and safety notices answer different questions. These selected sources are not a complete systematic review or a guarantee of personal results.
Exosome and stem-cell skin treatments3 sources
Official notice / correction · Selected official-document passages
Public Safety Notification on Exosome Products | FDA ↗
FDA notice of 6 December 2019 about serious adverse events after unapproved products marketed as exosomes in Nebraska. This is a safety signal, not cosmetic-skin incidence data. Its no-approved-products statement concerns the dated US notice, not a current global or Korean approval inventory.
Official notice / correction · Selected official-document passages
Consumer Alert on Regenerative Medicine Products Including Stem Cells and Exosomes ↗
Consumer alert dated 22 July 2020, with a current-as-of date of 9 April 2024, warns about unsubstantiated claims and authorization of regenerative products. Historical statements such as only cord-blood stem-cell products being approved are not reused as a 2026 approval inventory. It does not establish efficacy, legality or authorization of Korean cosmetic-skin products; current regulatory status and specific product identification remain outstanding.
Research literature · Selected paper passages
Regulation of exosomes as biologic medicines: Regulatory challenges faced in exosome development and manufacturing processes ↗
A 2024 narrative review of exosome manufacturing, quality and regulation-not a cosmetic patient-outcome trial. The selected discussion explains why particle size/count alone cannot establish composition, function or batch consistency. Historical authorization statements are not reused as a verified 2026 worldwide inventory. Actual Korean product identity, composition, manufacturing, injection/topical route and MFDS records require separate checks. Authors report no competing interests and university support.
IV drips1 sources
Research literature · Abstract only
Intravenous vitamin injections: where is the evidence? ↗
Abstract of a review of intravenous vitamin injections, not a single clinical trial. It describes a lack of high-quality evidence for health benefit from high-dose vitamin infusions without a specific deficiency or medical condition. It does not deny medically indicated treatment or establish whitening outcomes of a particular glutathione product or all infusion mixtures.
Skin boosters2 sources
Research literature · Selected paper passages
Injectable “Skin Boosters” in Aging Skin Rejuvenation: A Current Overview ↗
Used narrowly as a classification overview: ‘skin booster’ is not one ingredient, product or outcome. Reference 28 is the Pak 2014 PN-versus-HA trial retracted in 2016 (DOI 10.3346/jkms.2014.29.S3.S201); its 72-person superiority claims, numbers and figures are excluded. This does not mean the overview itself was retracted. Reference 29's separate 27-person trial reports at abstract level no significant VAS/GAIS difference, so broad PN superiority is not established. PN/PDRN/HA, injection/topical routes, wound/joint/cell evidence and cosmetic outcomes are kept separate. No fixed durability, necessary bundle or blanket safety guarantee is inferred.
Official notice / correction · Selected official-document passages
RETRACTION: Skin Boosters: Definitions and Varied Classifications ↗
The 21 November 2025 notice (10.1111/srt.70297) retracts the skin-booster classification paper 10.1111/srt.13627 for insufficient peer review and image citation/permission concerns. Its claims/images are excluded as efficacy evidence; this notice concerns publication integrity.
General information, not medical advice. Your doctor decides what suits you.
Quick answers
Is PRP a stem cell treatment?
No. PRP is plasma with platelets prepared from your own blood, and its use rests on platelet growth factors. A cell preparation is a different product. Ask the clinic which one it is offering.
What does 'blood stem cell' mean?
In English medical writing it usually means the stem cells in bone marrow that make all blood cells, the cells replaced in a bone marrow transplant. On a Seoul clinic menu it can describe something else, so ask what the product is.
Does 120 cc on a menu mean more stem cells than 60 cc?
Not necessarily. The number is usually the volume of blood drawn, not the dose of cells. Ask what the final preparation contains.
Treatment guides
IF THIS IS YOUR CONCERN