Stem cell therapy is a promising new regenerative medicine treatment Orlin & Cohen Orthopedic Group uses for many orthopedic conditions, especially arthritis. When you have arthritis, the cartilage that lines the bones has worn out.
For example, in the knee of a healthy person, the cartilage on the end of the thighbone glides smoothly against the cartilage on top of the shinbone. In an arthritis sufferer, the bones rub against one another painfully.
Approximately 54 million adults and 300,000 babies and children in the U.S. have been diagnosed. The condition is more common in women than in men and nearly half of U.S. adults with heart disease or diabetes and one-third of people suffering with obesity also have arthritis.
According to the CDC, the total of the national arthritis-attributable medical care costs combined with earnings losses among adults with arthritis is $303.5 billion.
Arthritis is a common, but difficult to treat, condition. Options include pills, shots, and finally, joint replacement therapy. Stem cell therapy may be a good alternative for people who do not yet want to consider surgery. Effective and noninvasive, stem cell therapy can show results in as little as five weeks.
Simply put, a stem cell is part of your body’s infinite “repair system.” Once divided, it may remain a stem cell or become another functional cell. Stem cells originate from a multitude of sources—the Orlin & Cohen team of subspecialists uses stem cells obtained from the patient’s own stomach body fat.
Six to 10 teaspoons of fat are obtained through a small liposuction procedure and the stem cells are separated from the rest of the fat. Blood is also drawn and its platelets separated and concentrated. The stem cells are combined with this platelet rich plasma (PRP), which is vital to healing, and injected where needed.
Orlin & Cohen has also found regenerative medicine to be a beneficial treatment for ligament damage, where injuries occur when the flexible muscle that connects the body’s bones is stretched too far and can range from mild to moderate to complete tears; muscle tears, which are caused by overloaded muscles, resulting in anything from mild pain to complete muscle ruptures and plantar fasciitis, for which more than 2 million patients are treated annually for this heel pain caused by the irritation and inflammation of the band of tissue that supports the foot’s arch. Regenerative medicine has also been beneficial for tendonitis, the inflammation of the thick cords that attach muscle to bone is typically marked by joint or limb pain, tenderness and mild swelling. Stem cell therapy is particularly successful with difficult-to-treat tendonitis of the elbow (tennis elbow).
If you or someone you know is suffering from arthritis or another orthopedic condition, regenerative medicine may be an excellent and effective alternative to surgery. Visit orlincohen.com to learn more.
—Submitted by Orlin & Cohen Orthopedic Group
