Stem cell therapy for knee cartilage regeneration

Knee pain due to arthritis is a major cause of disability worldwide. Non-invasive or conservative treatments can relieve mild to moderate pain with anti-inflammatory medications, physical therapy and sometimes, opioid pain medications.

The next phase of treatment involves steroid and hyaluronic acid injections. When that fails to relieve pain, surgical procedures, such as arthroscopic knee surgery are recommended. Many patients continue to experience knee joint cartilage degeneration and have to undergo knee joint replacement surgery.

Stem cell therapy for knees is a minimally invasive treatment option that can reduce inflammation, halt the degeneration, repair joint cartilage, and delay or even avoid knee replacement surgery.

Knee Cartilage Damage

Joint cartilage damage is a major problem because this tissue cannot repair itself. Joint cartilage allows smooth gliding of joint surfaces and protects the surrounding bone from stress. The cartilage allows the knee to absorb shock and loads several times the body weight.

Osteoarthritis, a chronic degenerative disorder, causes a gradual degeneration of this knee joint cartilage. The condition may also be caused due to a previous injury to the knee joint such as a ligament tear or fracture.

Finally, the joint may become unstable, causing more wear and tear of the joint cartilage. Eventually, the bone beneath the cartilage, the synovial lining to the joint, ligaments, tendons, and muscles, can all suffer damage.

Stem Cells for Degenerative Knee Cartilage

Stem cell injections have proven to be a better option to repair degenerative cartilage. Adult stem cells hold great potential to differentiate into cartilage, bone, fat or soft tissue. They also possess the ability to travel to areas of inflammation and degeneration.

Adult stem cells can be extracted by minimally invasive methods from adipose or fat tissue and bone marrow.

Fat derived stem cells or adipose stem cells possess an enhanced ability to differentiate into cartilage and are found in much greater numbers than found in bone marrow. Another advantage of fat derived stem cells is that they don’t decrease as we age. They can target cartilage defects and improve osteoarthritis.

A minimally invasive procedure to extract stem cells from adipose or fat tissue and inject the concentrated cells under image guidance to the targeted area can be performed in 2-3 hours. This procedure is often supplemented with additional growth factors from PRP or platelet rich plasma to utilize the best properties from each source.

Since the procedure is minimally invasive, no hospitalization or long recovery periods are needed. Patients can return to their normal routine almost right after the procedure although they may be advised to stay away from strenuous activities for some time.

To learn more about stem cell therapy and stem cell knee injections, call the leading Chicago stem cell treatment center, The Regenerative Stem Cell Institute at 855-340-7836 Now. The Regenerative Stem Cell Institute specializes in the use of adipose (fat) derived stem cells to advance successful outcomes and quality care in the area of regenerative medicine.

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stemcelldr Joined: June 20th, 2018