Arthritis Treatment with Stem Cells

1. Arthritis Treatment with Stem Cells

2. Arthritis is the disease of the musculoskeletal system in which the joints are affected. • At the early stages, the patient suffers from pain, difficulty walking, and limitation of usual activities. • Progression of the disease leads to worsening of quality of life, and in the long term to patient disability. • The conservative therapy for arthritis is just symptomatic treatment that consists of non-steroidal and steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, as well as heavy pain killers that have side effects and does not always bring relief. • These drugs may just reduce pain, and temporally eliminate inflammation in the joints, but they do not assist in the recovery of the affected tissues, as stem cells can do.

3. Using cell products for the treatment of arthritis is a proven good alternative in case if:

4. What are the effects of using stem cells to treat arthritis? Using cell products based on multipotent mesenchymal stromal cells (MMSCs) as a method of arthritis therapy gives a chance to reverse the symptoms (pain, swelling, local redness, stiffness and restriction of movements) and improve the function of damaged joints. In the therapy, MMSCs are the cells that: • improve the overall regenerative potential of the body, triggering the healing process; • provide a local and systemic anti-inflammatory effect, which reduces inflammation and pain; • activate the patient’s own stem cells which may result in the repair of the joint tissues and to the recovery of its function.

5. What results can be achieved through the use of sell products? When introduced to the patient’s body, MMSCs actively produce growth and anti-inflammatory factors – special protein molecules that are able to: • Relieve inflammation, so the pain and the swelling pass or become less pronounced. • Stimulate the growth of capillary networks, which help to improve the condition of cartilage tissue. This helps reduce the symptoms and causes of remission, improves the mobility of the affected joints and eliminates discomfort when moving, raising both the patient’s health and overall quality of life.

6. What is the source of stem cells for arthritis treatment? • In the case of autologous cell products, MMCSs are being derived from the patient’s own adipose tissue or bone marrow. MMSCs derived from adipose tissue have the highest chondrogenic potential. Harvesting from own patient fat is also a less invasive procedure. Despite this, it is possible to get stem cells from the patient’s bone marrow. • In order for the effect to be maximized, the decision on the source of the cells is made by the doctor depending on the patient’s condition and the expected efficiency of the cells. • If there are any contraindications for autologous cells harvesting or therapy should commence immediately, we use allogeneic (donor) cell products based on cells derived from healthy donor’s tissues with a higher therapeutic potential. It is known that the properties of this type of cells are almost the same regardless of whether they are derived from the patient or a donor.

7. Why do we use stem cells? • Multipotent mesenchymal stem cells have the unique ability to transform into other cells in tissues (i.e. differentiate) and the ability to reproduce themselves. • The special value of stem cell therapy is its capacity to stimulate joint regeneration and restoration by stimulating the growth of the cells in the damaged area and regenerating the tissue. • When stem cells are injected directly into the affected joint, they improve its tissue, normalize metabolism, and improve trophicity, which leads to a reduction of inflammation and recovery of joint mobility.

8. References: • https://www.startstemcells.com/arthritis-stem-cell-treatment.html