Nov 16, 2015
And Let us say Amen. You may not have noticed, but last Thursday, the weekly Blog I write was not posted; because I was off for a week with my two sons fishing the flats of Ascension Bay along the eastern cost of Mexico. While I practice Regenerative Medicine and Interventional Orthopedics, I am very much aware that accompanying the notion of physical well being is spiritual well being. Every year at this time I repeat the “pilgrimage” because just as the spiritual reminds us, your knee joint is connected to your thigh bone and your hip joint is connected to your back, so too is your body connected to your mind. Regeneration and Renewal are like love and marriage; you can’t have one without the other.
I am reminded of the patient I treated two years ago with a bone marrow aspirate concentrate intervention for his arthritic knees. At the time of his first office consultation, though he only lived six blocks from my office; because he couldn’t walk that far, he took a cab. Six weeks later, he returned for follow-up and complained about his ongoing pain and his disappointment in the outcome although in preparation for the procedure, I had informed him it might take up to 18 months to reach maximum medical improvement. When I inquired as to his mode of transportation to my office, he responded that he had walked. Physically, he was enjoying an excellent outcome but spiritually, he needed renewal as well.
As I look at the storefronts in my neighborhood and in downtown Chicago, I am reminded that the holidays are not far away. As I look at the weather forecast, I see that a high of 32 degrees is forecast for November 23 and my thoughts turn to skiing and your hips and knees. What Regenexx does is renew your hips and knees for the outdoors or indoors, holidays and more. If you want a renewal of spirit, try living without pain and increasing your functional capacity. We can make this happen with our Bone Marrow Aspirate Concentrate/ Stem Cell interventions. This morning, a patient contacted me via e-mail to tell me about his friend who before age 55, is on his third hip replacement at the same joint. While my patient has not been totally relieved of his hip pain by my BMAC intervention, he play golf and is fully active whereas his buddy, after a third hip replacement, lives a painful, inactive life dependent on a cane. When coping with the limitations of arthritis, give the opportunity for renewal of body leading to renewal of spirit some thought and then give me a call for an appointment: 847 390 7666
Tags: arthritis, athletes, Benefits and Risk, bone marrow, Bone Marrow Concentrate, Hip, Hip Replacement, Interventional Orthopedics, joint replacement, Knee Pain Relief, Mature Athlete, medicine, Orthopedic Care, Orthopedic Surgeon, Orthopedics, Osteoarthritis, Pain Management, Regenerative, Regenexx, Regenexx-SD, stem cells, treatment
Nov 5, 2015
My last Blog brought you greetings and discussed some of the issues reviewed at the first meeting of the Interventional Orthopedic Foundation. This not for profit foundation was founded to help facilitate the transfer of scientific regenerative medicine developments into clinical practice. One challenge is how to improve the outcomes of what is now the gold standard of Interventional Orthopedics, Bone Marrow Aspirate Concentrate in managing arthritis of major joints. We seek to see longer effect and better results. While there are all kinds of claims being made for amniotic fluid concentrate and adipose (fat) derived stem cells, as of now, there is no data to support said claims.
I have played a large role in documenting the success of Bone Marrow Concentrate intervention for arthritis. Now I want to see if I can improve those results. At the Interventional Orthopedic Foundation meeting, various means of improving outcomes were discussed including, hyperbaric oxygen, ultrasound, lasers, ultraviolet light and finally, electro-stimulation. I was reminded of a study in which I was involved five years ago using an electronic pulse joined to a knee brace to try to regenerate cartilage. The study was based on animal models who when subjected to an electronic pulse grew cartilage. It occurred to me that the answer to improving the quantity and the quality of a Bone Marrow Aspirate Concentrate/ Stem cell intervention for an arthritic knee might be the pulsed brace. If every patient who undergoes a stem cell intervention for arthritis is prescribed a brace post treatment, since we know that the pulse is safe and potentially helpful, why not add the pulse to the post intervention protocol. To that end, I am happy to announce the introduction of this methodology to our post intervention protocol via a clinical trial starting in December
We will follow each patient for up to a year with our standard clinical objective and subjective means and periodic X-Rays with no added fiscal burden to the patient. The results of this study will then be presented to the 2016 meeting of the Interventional Orthopedic Foundation as I continue to integrate patient care with research. There is no question that patients who wore the brace and used the pulse for arthritis without stem cell intervention in the past were improved; imagine the potential leap forward by adding the pulse to the brace after a Bone marrow Aspirate Concentrate/ Stem Cell intervention.
Tags: arthritis, athletes, Benefits and Risk, Bone Marrow Concentrate, Clinical Studies, Clinical Trial. Mitchell B. Sheinkop, Hip Replacement, Interventional Orthopedics, joint replacement, Knee, Mature Athlete, medicine, Orthopedic Care, Orthopedics, Osteoarthritis, Pain Management, Pilot Study, Regenerative, Regenerative Pain Center, Regenexx, Regenexx-SD, stem cells, treatment
Oct 16, 2015
Tissue Regeneration has become the new standard for Grades 2 and 3 arthritis. Three years ago, I anticipated the future recognizing that the risks of joint replacement surgery were not fully taken into account when a surgeon recommended a new hip, knee or shoulder. Certainly, in advanced arthritis (Grade 4) there is little alternative for pain relief and restoration of function; but for Grades 2 and 3, do the risks outweigh the benefits? What is not taken seriously enough are the risks inherent in a surgical procedure. A recent scientific article reminds us of those risks.
“Knee, hip replacements might be bad for the heart short-term.”
“Contrary to some recent research, Boston-based researchers found osteoarthritis patients who had total knee or hip arthroplasty procedures were at increased risk of myocardial infarction in the early post-operative period. Their findings, published Aug. 31 in Arthritis & Rheumatology, a journal of the American College of Rheumatology, indicate long-term risk of heart attack did not persist, while the risk for venous thromboembolism remained years after the procedure.”
Up until 2001, the patient undergoing a joint replacement was discharged on post operative day four or five. Any complications taking place were reported as a postoperative morbidity, rarely, as a mortality. Today, a patient will leave the hospital between 23 and 36 hours following a joint replacement. Should, if, or when a complication ensues, it may never be recorded as a readmission to another hospital if not registered. Medicare has started penalizing hospitals for high readmission rates within 30 days of a discharge but this is only a recent development and doesn’t as of yet, include readmissions to a second location.
Last time, I indicated I would start updating the reader with new developments in the field of Regenerative Medicine. The goal of regenerative therapies is to modulate the stages of healing including inflammation, cell migration and proliferation. We do this though use of tissue grafts such as Bone Marrow Aspirate Concentrate.
Tags: arthritis, Benefits and Risk, bone marrow, Bone Marrow Concentrate, Concentrated Stem Cell Plasma, Hip Replacement, Interventional Orthopedics, Knee, Knee Pain Relief, Mature Athlete, medicine, Orthopedic Care, Orthopedic Surgeon, Osteoarthritis, Pain Management, Regenerative, Regenexx, Regenexx-SD, stem cells, treatment
Sep 3, 2015
In the field of Orthobiologics, the introduction of new product and possibility is continuous. The challenge to the clinician is to adopt a clinical approach based on scientific proof and clinical data; not marketing hype and anecdote. Regenexx, where I have been invited to be part of an advisory board, is home to the nation’s most advanced and studied stem cell and blood derived platelet procedures. We have more clinical experience and research with bone marrow derived orthobiologics for arthritis, than any other clinical setting in the United States.
At the Regenexx Chicago office, we offer non-surgical options for people experiencing moderate to advanced pain and limitation due to degenerative arthritis no matter the cause. Our patients experience little to no down time from our procedures and avoid the painful and lengthy rehabilitation that is inherent in a joint replacement. Knowing there are non-surgical and minimally invasive orthobiologic options, don’t throw away your skis or let your bike get rusty. Just as the skis need to be tuned for the upcoming season, (Vail opens in 12 weeks), and the wonderful cycling days through the changing colors are four weeks away, so too does your body need to be updated and upgraded. If you have limitations from an arthritic joint, perhaps you should let me determine how Cellular Orthopedics may allow you to return to an unlimited athletic or recreational profile.
Our data include Efficacy and Safety of Bone Marrow Concentrate for Osteoarthritis of the Hip; Treatment Registry Results for 196 patients. At the knee, I have presented in July and will be presenting the outcomes in October of 187 Bone Marrow Aspirate Concentrate Knee interventions with comparison to Total Knee Replacements. The fact is that at Regenexx, our therapeutic recommendations are not based on new product and the associated marketing hype inherent in a corporate initiative but rather on our data base statistical analyses and scientific studies, both in the laboratory and in the clinical setting. We practice evidence-based medicine, not offerings based on unsubstantiated claims.
Of course, we are able to provide an abundance of anecdotal success stories in our athletes be it a torn acetabular labrum, a torn medial meniscus or a torn rotator cuff. To learn more, check out my Blog www.sheinkopmd.com/blog even better yet, call for a consultation: (312) 475-1893.
Tags: arthritis, athletes, Benefits and Risk, bone marrow, Bone Marrow Concentrate, Hip, Hip Replacement, Interventional Orthopedics, joint replacement, Knee, Knee Pain Relief, Mature Athlete, medicine, Orthopedic Care, Orthopedics, Osteoarthritis, Pain Management, Regenexx, Regenexx-SD, stem cells, treatment
Aug 6, 2015
In both the shoulder and the hip, there is a structure called the Labrum that since the introduction of the MRI and the arthroscope, has received exponential surgical attention. In the hip, the acetabular labrum is a ring of cartilage that surrounds the socket of the hip joint. Its function is to deepen the acetabulum and make it more difficult for the head of the femur to slip out of place. At the shoulder, the Glenoid Labrum is soft fibrous tissue that surrounds the socket to help stabilize the joint. Injuries to either structure may occur from acute trauma, repetitive impingement or as part of the degenerative osteoarthritic process. Symptoms of a tear in either location include pain, may be mechanical in nature (catching, locking, popping, or grinding), a decreased range of motion and loss of strength.
Herein is the diagnostic and therapeutic dilemma; does the orthopedist address the history and physical examination, the results of imaging, all of the above or some of the above? On the one hand, it has been clearly established both at the shoulder and at the hip, labral injury as demonstrated on the MRI or CT arthrogram may not be the source of the pain. If the problem is pain and there are arthritic changes in the joint, the results of arthroscopic surgery are poor. Even when there are mechanical symptoms such as catching, locking, grinding and popping, arthroscopic clean outs do not succeed in the presence of arthritis. When it comes to the shoulder, the arthroscopic attempt at repair of the labrum as part of the rotator cuff injury has only a 50% success rate. Even when done correctly, poor patient selection and complications can be devastating resulting in injury to cartilage, injury to bone, and chronic irritation of the joint lining.
Assume if you will that a 45 to 55 year old or even older patient presents with pain in the shoulder or hip. The MRI is interpreted as compatible with a labral tear. There is an option which may very well eliminate the pain and affect healing of the torn structure, Bone Marrow Aspirate Concentrate followed by physical therapy. The procedure is done with a needle and not a scalpel; the complication rate in my experience is extremely low and the success rate extremely high. Let me cite an example of a patient who presented at age 67 with bilateral chronic shoulder pain for which he had undergone multiple prior attempts at arthroscopic surgical remedy. Four months after having undergone bilateral Bone Marrow Aspirate Concentrate Stem Cell intervention, he is off his chronic opiate containing pain medication and playing golf while having returned to his unlimited fitness routine. This is only one success story, there are many more. If you want to learn more about the potential options for your painful shoulder or hip, call for a consultation:
847 390 7666
Tags: arthritis, athletes, Benefits and Risk, bone marrow, Bone Marrow Concentrate, Hip, Hip Replacement, Interventional Orthopedics, Knee Pain Relief, Mature Athlete, medicine, Orthopedic Care, Orthopedic Surgeon, Osteoarthritis, Pain Management, Regenexx, Regenexx-SD, shoulder, stem cells, treatment, Ultrasound Guided Injection
