The scientific community is always on the move to develop procedures that help improve patients’ quality of life. One such procedure is stem cell therapy, which was once only available to select groups of people.
Today, stem cell therapy promotes faster and full recovery of orthopedic injuries. It can help bring back your level of physicality from before your injury and allow you to work and play sports again. Here’s how successful stem cell therapy can be.
How Successful Is Stem Cell Therapy?
Stem cell therapy has been labeled a “miracle treatment” because of its potential regenerative properties. However, it’s important to recognize that it is constantly advancing. Many medical centers report high efficacy rates of symptom improvement for orthopedic injuries, but there isn’t conclusive evidence to determine a success rate for stem cell therapy.
Despite a lack of definitive numbers to back up claims about stem cell therapy, clinical trials have shown its recuperative ability. In these trials, the effects of stem cell procedures were tested against various orthopedic injuries. Conditions that showed the most significant improvement include:
- Patellar tendinopathy — pain and swelling in the patellar tendon, or the fibrous band of tissue connecting the kneecap and shinbone
- Avascular necrosis — the death of bone tissue due to insufficient blood supply
- Fracture — the breaking of bones into two or more pieces
Stem cell therapy has shown promising results, but it’s essential to be aware of where it stands as a whole in terms of development.
How Does Stem Cell Therapy Work?
Stem cell therapy, also called regenerative medicine, uses stem cells to repair tissue damage. The stem cells are grown and developed into whichever type of cell is needed for the procedure. Instead of performing surgery, healthcare providers use injections to apply stem cells into affected areas. In orthopedic care, stem cells act as a repair mechanism that targets tears, breaks, and other injuries.
Stem cells can be considered your body’s origin cells since they divide to form daughter cells. They don’t have a specific function, but their daughter cells can become specialized (like blood cells or heart cells).
Stem cells are the only type of cells in your body that can create cells of a different kind, which is why they are recognized for their potential for regeneration.
There are different types of stem cells:
- Embryonic stem cells — stem cells from a three to five-day-old embryo
- Perinatal stem cells — stem cells from umbilical cord blood and amniotic fluid
- Adult stem cells — stem cells from adult tissue like bone marrow
- Adult cells transformed into embryonic stem cells — adult stem cells genetically reprogrammed to adopt characteristics of embryonic stem cells
What Conditions Benefit From Stem Cell Therapy?
Stem cell therapy has been used on patients who suffer tissue damage from conditions like type-1 diabetes, cancer, and heart disease. It helps promote recovery for people with burns, stroke, and other illnesses. Stem cell therapy has been shown to improve symptoms for people with orthopedic injuries like:
- Fracture — broken bones
- Spinal injury — conditions affecting your spinal column and spinal cord
- Osteoarthritis — damage to the cartilage, or the rubbery tissue that cushions your bones
- Tissue injury — the tearing or overstretching of connective tissues like tendons, cartilages, or ligaments, or the fibrous band of tissue connecting the bones in your joints
- Rotator cuff injury — the tearing or degeneration of the muscles and tendons surrounding your shoulder joint
- ACL tear — the overstretching or tearing of the anterior cruciate ligament located in the center of the knee
- MCL tear — the overstretching or tearing of the medial collateral ligament located on the inner side of the knee
- Achilles tendon rupture — tearing of the tendon connecting the lower leg to the heel
Stem Cell Therapy in Naples, FL
The medical and scientific communities are always coming up with new ways to improve patients’ quality of life. Stem cell therapy was developed just a few decades ago, but it has shown remarkable success in treating orthopedic injuries.
If you’re looking for stem cell therapy treatment in Naples, look no further than Joint Replacement Institute. We have board-certified and fellowship-trained orthopedic surgeons who can give you the comprehensive care you deserve.
If you want to know more about our services, call our friendly staff at (239) 261-2663. If you want to book a consultation, you can use our secure online appointment request form. We look forward to serving you!
