Regenerative Medicine Options

Regenerative medicine is an exciting new cutting-edge technology where injectable treatments can be used to help the body heal degeneration as well as other long-term benefits such as anti-inflammation. Traditionally, cortisone was used as injections into joints to decrease swelling and symptoms but repetitive injections can actually cause harm long-term, as well as increase the risk of infection if joint replacement surgery is necessary in the future. Hyaluronic Acid viscosupplementation injections were invented to help reduce arthritic symptoms, and often required multiple injections over multiple weeks, but did have relatively good success. These injections need to be repeated every 6 to 12 months, and those that saw relief from arthritis had the benefit of avoiding the complications of oral anti-inflammatories.

While the actual mechanism is not understood and may be related to lubricating the joints, these injections have worked in many patients. The latest group of injectables are grouped under stem cells regenerative medicine and include PRP, bone marrow aspirate, amniotic membrane, placental membrane, Wharton jelly umbilical cord, and fat stem cells.

Amniovo:

Aminovo is an in-office biologics treatment done through injection. The foundation of Aminovo is a human amniotic membrane/tissue. This is similar to what is commonly known as cord blood. The amniotic membrane is only harvested from a donation made from a mother giving birth.

A2M Injections:

injections are related to this group of injections but are not stem cells. A2M injections block certain enzymes that cause inflammation and pain in arthritis and are an excellent choice to prevent symptoms compared to cortisone in the right patients.

Lipogems (Fat Stem Cells):

Stem cells derived from fat can also be effective. Similar to Bone Marrow Aspiration, collecting fat stem cells is also an invasive procedure and carry some of the same risks. Some studies have also shown that it is extremely variable on how many stem cells are derived in each injection.

BMA (Bone Marrow Aspirate):

BMA (Bone Marrow Aspiration) is similar to PRP in that blood is removed from your pelvic bone to derive the stem cells. It has better stem cells than the PRP but it has other risks related because of removal area. Potential risks or side effects of Bone Marrow Aspiration are pain, infection, and fracture.

PRP:

PRP are growth factors that are removed from, typically, 60 cc’s of blood from peripheral body parts (hands). PRP injections have been shown to be more effective than HLA (Hyaluronic Acid) injections recently for arthritis pain.

HA (Hyaluronic Acid) Injections:

Hyaluronic acid injection is used to treat knee pain caused by osteoarthritis (OA) in patients who have already been treated with pain relievers and other treatments that did not work well. Hyaluronic acid is similar to a substance that occurs naturally in the joints. It works by acting as a lubricant and shock absorber in the joints and helps the joints to work properly.