The failure or hang ups of surgery and rehabilitation has often led professional athletes to spend thousands for stem cell injections to repair damaged tissue. The procedure is turning mainstream, as sports medicine and orthopedic surgeons seek older patients who are up to spend similar amounts of cash for the promise of feeling youthful again.
Dr. Jesse Sally, of Rehabilitation Pain Specialists, gave a presentation to a group of Bethel Park residents on June 25, touting the benefits of the stem cell and platelet-rich plasma procedures he offers at his clinics through the Regenexx program. The newest location opened at 701 Boyce Road, Bridgeville, in March.
With an ACL tear, 90 percent of patients saw improvement ... with 50 percent improvement at six months, he said of nearly 16,000 patients in a nationwide database compiled since 2005. According to practice spokeswoman Mary Cvetan, Dr. Sally and other doctors have treated 250 local patients in the region since April 2013.
Insurance covers consultation, diagnostics, bracing and post-recovery, but the actual procedures ranging from $300-7,500 are not covered by insurance. The procedures get a technical pass from the Food and Drug Administration because they are same-day body modifications and arent considered a drug process like some other stem cell procedures. According to Dr. Sally, double-blind testing cannot be done with an authentic placebo, thus having anecdotal reports of patient success serve as the primary data set, which is not viable for insurance companies to write-off on.
The stem cell procedure pulls your own stem cells. Theres a little bit of pain, but we numb you up very well and draw the cells from the back of your pelvis hip bone, he said. Those cells are then reintroduced to an injured site, like a shoulder or knee, and the undifferentiated cells that can copy any type of cell in the body go to work by cloning themselves and adhering to tissue as if they were part of the original body mechanism. At least thats what doctors have said about the evidence behind the procedure still in its infancy. Since 2006, scientists have successfully been able to reprogram stem cells to act as other cells in a persons own body, but the success of their new roles relative to pain and movement still arent thoroughly documented.
You can have one (stem) cell be Obi Wan Kenobi, the other is Darth Vader, said University of Pittsburgh head athletics physician, Dr. Freddie Fu. Dr. Fu said he has refused to administer stem cells to patients despite their availability because of the unverifiable nature of reported success.
But even doctors who are skeptical acknowledge the underlying medical premise is sound: to have ones own body repair itself. Some of the Regenexx procedures that dont use stem cells, like platelet-rich plasma injections, purposefully antagonize an injured area, encouraging inflammation and spurring a repair response from the body.
As for future patients getting the procedures paid for, Dr. Sally said his and others practices have to develop an objective way to test for patient outcomes other than them simply reporting how they feel months after the procedure.
I think the insurance companies need to look at patient outcomes as they relate to a persons general health. But the companies look at hard data, so official numbers with statistical significance is not something we have right now. We have to design randomized trials and improve them so it works for insurance providers, he said, but otherwise, this is the least invasive way to deal with pain and movement issues when compared to surgery. Its a safe outcome with improved function.
David Singer
Go here to read the rest:
Stem cell therapy comes to Bridgeville | The Almanac
- Stem Cell Transplantation at Billings Clinic Cancer Center [Last Updated On: August 22nd, 2014] [Originally Added On: August 22nd, 2014]
- Stem Cell Therapy for Hammertoe in Pryor Montana [Last Updated On: August 29th, 2014] [Originally Added On: August 29th, 2014]
- Montana Stem Cell Therapy | Stem Cell Treatments [Last Updated On: August 29th, 2014] [Originally Added On: August 29th, 2014]
- Stem Cell Therapy for Hidradenitis suppurativa in Buffalo ... [Last Updated On: August 30th, 2014] [Originally Added On: August 30th, 2014]
- Stem Cell Treatments - What options do I have? [Last Updated On: September 27th, 2014] [Originally Added On: September 27th, 2014]
- California Stem Cell Report: Former CEO of California Stem ... [Last Updated On: September 27th, 2014] [Originally Added On: September 27th, 2014]
- Stem cell therapy for Nummular Eczema in Browning Montana [Last Updated On: September 28th, 2014] [Originally Added On: September 28th, 2014]
- CSHL Stem Cells Symposium Chats - Meetings & Courses Home [Last Updated On: October 31st, 2014] [Originally Added On: October 31st, 2014]
- Nadal to receive stem cell treatment for back pain [Last Updated On: November 12th, 2014] [Originally Added On: November 12th, 2014]
- Irving Weissman, MD - Ludwig Center for Cancer Stem Cell ... [Last Updated On: December 12th, 2014] [Originally Added On: December 12th, 2014]
- Stem Cell Skincare: Fact or Fiction? - Stem Cells in ... [Last Updated On: December 17th, 2014] [Originally Added On: December 17th, 2014]
- Quadriplegic veteran to receive stem cell treatments [Last Updated On: January 9th, 2015] [Originally Added On: January 9th, 2015]
- "Latest Stem Cells News" - news from the world about stem ... [Last Updated On: January 10th, 2015] [Originally Added On: January 10th, 2015]
- Hearing Loss And Stem Cell Research - All American Hearing [Last Updated On: April 6th, 2015] [Originally Added On: April 6th, 2015]
- Harvard Sued Over Stem Cell Paper Misconduct Investigation ... [Last Updated On: April 27th, 2015] [Originally Added On: April 27th, 2015]
- Biologics | Orthopedics This Week [Last Updated On: October 19th, 2015] [Originally Added On: October 19th, 2015]
- 7. Stem Cells and Diabetes [Stem Cell Information] [Last Updated On: October 19th, 2015] [Originally Added On: October 19th, 2015]
- Stems & Vascular Tissue : Montana Science Partnership [Last Updated On: November 23rd, 2016] [Originally Added On: November 23rd, 2016]
- Juice Beauty STEM CELLULAR Anti-Wrinkle Solutions Kit [Last Updated On: November 27th, 2016] [Originally Added On: November 27th, 2016]
- Houndstongue | Montana Weed Control Association [Last Updated On: December 3rd, 2016] [Originally Added On: December 3rd, 2016]
- Report: Scientists edit human embryos for first time in US - NBC Montana [Last Updated On: July 30th, 2017] [Originally Added On: July 30th, 2017]
- Scientists edit disease-causing gene mutation in human embryos - NBC Montana [Last Updated On: August 7th, 2017] [Originally Added On: August 7th, 2017]
- The Most Promising Scientific Discoveries of 2017 | Reader's Digest - Reader's Digest [Last Updated On: August 16th, 2017] [Originally Added On: August 16th, 2017]
- Scientists edit pig genome with goal of human organ transplants - NBC Montana [Last Updated On: August 16th, 2017] [Originally Added On: August 16th, 2017]
- Cardiac stem cells rejuvenate rats' aging hearts, study says - NBC Montana [Last Updated On: August 16th, 2017] [Originally Added On: August 16th, 2017]
- Montana Stem Cell Therapy - Cordblood Search Tools [Last Updated On: August 5th, 2018] [Originally Added On: August 5th, 2018]
- Helping You Decide | Montana Cord Blood Banking [Last Updated On: March 5th, 2019] [Originally Added On: March 5th, 2019]
- The Role of Plants in Bioremediation of Coal Bed Methane ... [Last Updated On: May 18th, 2019] [Originally Added On: May 18th, 2019]
- Biocellular Regenerative Medicine - About Us [Last Updated On: September 7th, 2019] [Originally Added On: September 7th, 2019]
- A Doctor Plumbs The Depths Of Ivan Doig's Illness And Asks: 'Did He Have An Epiphany?' - Mountain Journal [Last Updated On: October 8th, 2019] [Originally Added On: October 8th, 2019]
- The Past and the Future of the Earths Oldest Trees - The New Yorker [Last Updated On: January 13th, 2020] [Originally Added On: January 13th, 2020]
- Heres how long the coronavirus can live in the air and on packages - MIT Technology Review [Last Updated On: March 16th, 2020] [Originally Added On: March 16th, 2020]
- Coronavirus treatment research is delayed by Trumps ban on the use of fetal tissue - Vox.com [Last Updated On: March 20th, 2020] [Originally Added On: March 20th, 2020]
- NYC schools to close again; 900 Mayo Clinic staffers infected; Pfizer to seek vaccine approval 'within days' - West Haven Observer [Last Updated On: November 24th, 2020] [Originally Added On: November 24th, 2020]
- The Solterra Is Exactly the EV That Subaru Fans Want - Road & Track [Last Updated On: March 25th, 2022] [Originally Added On: March 25th, 2022]
- Phloem - Wikipedia [Last Updated On: July 3rd, 2022] [Originally Added On: July 3rd, 2022]