Cartilage Regeneration versus Joint Restoration, what’s the difference?
I swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, so help me G_d. Injured cartilage in a skeletally mature adult typically doesn’t heal on its own; surgical techniques are needed in an attempt to repair and replace cartilage. These latter procedures are appropriate for specific cartilage injury, rather than the widespread cartilage changes found in the osteoarthritic joint. That is not to say that someday soon, we may have the ability to regenerate cartilage. Research is ongoing in regenerative medicine with continual progress as evidenced by preliminary success in spinal cord injured patients:
StemCyte gets FDA green light to continue studying spinal cord injury treatment stem cells.
Now for the bad news. In spite of false news generated by the charlatans, parasites, camp followers and hucksters in their Regenerative Medicine seminars, print media and television adds; there is no scientific evidence to support their claims of cartilage regeneration, hair restoration, cure of erectile dysfunction, so on and so forth.
“Unfortunately, what I had hoped to be a hard-hitting expose turned into limp-noodle babbling. Another missed opportunity.” Continuing the commentary about regenerative medicine clinic charlatans and fraud started by NBC, when a patient showed me a brochure from yet another group that holds itself out to treat every abnormal medical condition from A to Z with “Stem Cells”, I suggested that he request data regarding their successes. Please bear in mind the self- contradicting adage that Always and Never statements are always false and never true. They are frequently used by people who suffer from personality disorders. On Friday he sent me the response to his inquiry regarding outcomes at a one of the national stem cell clinics.
“success rates per our clinical research network are VERY encouraging: Orthopedic: knee 83%, hip 80%, back (cervical, thoracic, lumbar, sacral 80% ave., ED 77%, Cataracts 100%” Remember what I just wrote about Always and Never?
The good news though is that there is emerging scientific evidence to justify Joint Restoration with a cellular orthopedic procedure. While an image of an arthritic joint allows for identification of cartilage and meniscal changes, that same image will frequently be consistent with bone marrow edema, and thickening of the bone adjacent to a joint (subchondral sclerosis) as well as loose bodies within the joint. As cartilage does not have a nerve supply, the pain generation in Osteoarthritis more probable than not is the result of inflammation of the synovial joint lining and the subchondral bone. While there is no scientific means of re-growing cartilage after age 40 at this time-defects may be filled by surgery-orthopedic surgeons focusing on Cellular Orthopedics have developed methods to restore the joint function by blocking the pain generators, restoring healthy subchondral bone, and reversing bone marrow edema.
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Tags: arthritis, bone marrow edema, cartilage regeneration, cellular orthopedic, Hip pain, inflammation, joint health, joint pain, knee pain, medicine, meniscus tear, Osteoarthritis, restoration, soft tissue repair, stem cell, stem cell injection, subchondral bone