KNEE TREATMENTS FOOT, TOE & ANKLE TREATMENTS SHOULDER TREATMENTS AESTHETIC TREATMENTS HIP TREATMENTS ELBOW TREATMENTS HAND & WRIST TREATMENTS BACK PAIN TREATMENT

Does Regenerative treatment deliver a promising result in restoring your joint health?

Joint health is a major characteristic of mobility as well as overall quality of life. From cradle to grave, accidents and injuries often leave our joints worse off. In the absence of accidents, wear and tear can cause arthritis.

When young and fit people frequently get well from injuries with conventional treatments, aging bodies do not respond. Tendons, cartilage, and ligaments, have restricted regenerative capacity, which fades further with age. When the body can’t restore itself, we opt for joint replacement surgeries that are accompanied with pain and other medical risks. Thus, the conventional treatment seems to be a difficult choice by putting your health under risk with surgery or suffer restricted mobility.

Regenerative Medicine Treatment: A Right Solution?

Regenerative medicine is a growing field that aims to protect joints rather than replace them. Using orthobiologics, we equip the body with the regenerative cells, needed to heal without surgery. This seems to be an ideal solution, potentially delaying the need for joint replacements. At the same time, it eases the burden on transplant waiting lists as well. However, the adoption of regenerative medicine into national guidelines is still a topic of debate.

Proof and Debate

Case studies and anecdotal proof often support orthobiologics which are biological substances that help the body heal naturallt. However, the current studies vary in size, creating a challenge for universal acceptance. There is considerable evidence supporting regenerative treatment for specific conditions like osteoarthritis and Tendinopathy. Still, a more extensive proof is required for these therapies to become a standard practice. Some meta-analyses have provided only minor effects for treatments like platelet-rich plasma (PRP), recommending against their utility as conservative treatments.

Historical Context of Regenerative Treatment

The concept of regenerative medicine is not new. Ancient Greek mythology, with the tale of Prometheus, hints at an early understanding of the body’s regenerative abilities. Dated back to 500 BC, the first known “regenerative” procedure was performed where Roman soldiers’ joint dislocations were treated with hot needle therapy.

Advancements began in the 1940s with Magnuson’s treatment for osteoarthritis via extensive knee debridement. The consequent therapies included microfracturing cartilage (Steadman, 1984), joint irritation with saline injections (prolotherapy by Hackett et al., 1956), and drilling into arthritic cartilage (Pridie, 1959). More recent advancements focus on cell implantation to stimulate healing in musculoskeletal structures, introducing interventions like PRP, mesenchymal stem cell treatment (MSCs), and biomaterial injections.

Current State of Regenerative Medicine in Orthopedics

Despite its promise, regenerative medicine struggles to find a place in standard practice and large healthcare organizations, largely due to debates over the adequacy of its evidence base. PRP treatment and adipose-derived stem cell treatment require patients to pay out-of-pocket, since insurance firms typically do not cover these treatments. However, more practitioners utilise regenerative medicine for knee osteoarthritis and tendinopathy.

Types of Orthobiologic Treatments

Orthobiologics are gradually more popular, especially due to media coverage of famous athletes like Steph Curry, Tiger Woods, and Rafael Nadal using these treatments. The procedures used for injury recovery and post-surgical healing, include:

Orthobiologics are considered conservative treatments, which are used as less invasive alternatives to surgery or when other procedures fail.

Research Findings

Orthobiologics proves to manage degenerative diseases of the knee and other chronic inflammatory conditions [1]. Research findings indicate that regenerative medicine for knee osteoarthritis including MSCs and PRP are safe, well-tolerated, and effective with frequent administrations and increased concentrations leading to improvements in patient outcomes. PRP treatment proves to be more effective for patients with early-stage knee osteoarthritis (KOA Kellgren-Lawrence grade I-II), while MSCs are extensively effective for those with mid-stage KOA (grade II-III). Furthermore, MSC trials have found reduced cartilage loss without adverse side effects [2].

The Future of Regenerative Medicine

Regenerative medicine is likely to delay or reduce the need for surgical interventions in patients with degenerative joint conditions and musculoskeletal injuries. In future, orthobiologics could serve as a middle-ground therapy for conditions like arthritis, positioned between conservative procedures and surgery. Hence, there will be a shift from metal and ceramic joint replacements to biological replacements and regeneration.

Overcoming Challenges

Several challenges remain before orthobiologics can become a standard treatment. These include scientific and political controversies, mainly around stem cell research, and the requirement for a more solid proof. On top of that, improving available treatments’, improvement of symptoms, long-term effect, and safety are essential. Additional challenges include storing stem cells, swiftly growing cells for grafting and preparing the musculoskeletal system for tissue regeneration.

Conclusion

Regenerative treatment is an exciting field that could manage or even cure conditions that current therapies cannot address. Although we are not at a point where orthobiologics can completely replace conventional treatments, the regenerative medicine field is expected to grow and advance considerably in the coming decade.