A Patient From Mexico with Hip Arthritis
A patient from Mexico consulted Dennis M. Lox, MD, for hip arthritis or osteoarthritis (OA). Unlike rheumatoid arthritis, which is an autoimmune disease, osteoarthritis or generalized arthritis may be multifactorial. Previously osteoarthritis (OA) was felt to be a disorder of wear and tear or life events. We now know osteoarthritis (OA) or arthritis of the hip, knee, spine and other joints is more complicated.
There may be a genetic component. Trauma predisposes to the development of OA.
Trauma may be work related,accidents or often sports injuries.
Surgery is a form of trauma. Biomechanics such as malalignment, obesity, and joint laxity may accelerate the development of hip joint arthritis (OA).
Stem cell and Regenerative Medicine may alter the course of arthritis, or even be reparative. By definition, osteoarthritis is a progressive incurable disorder. That is certainly true with conventional therapies. Prescription arthritis medications (NSAID’s), cortisone injections, hyaluronic acid injections, and even surgery do not alter this progression. Regenerative Medicine is firmly entrenched in altering this paradigm. Stem cells are master control cells which regulate degenerative catabolic signals breaking the joint cartilage down. Stem cells have potent immunomodulatory regulatory functions. This allows for controlling joint inflammation, which erodes the joint cartilage in ways no other prior treatment can. Additionally, stem cells may differentiate into a new cell type such as a new cartilage cell, resulting in a reparative effect that drugs, cortisone, and surgery are incapable of doing. Stem cells are not new. Bone marrow transplants from the 1960’s for leukemia used stem cells to replace blood cells lost after chemotherapy or irradiation therapy. It just did not know in the 1960’s it was the magical nature of stem cells that were healing and repairing. Today we no longer have to use crude bone marrow transplants from other individuals which require powerful immunosuppressive drugs to fight immune rejection. We understand stem cells and immune responses much better.
The field of Regenerative Medicine, and stem cell research has exploded in the last 5 years into all areas of medicine. Stem cells and Regenerative Medicine will not go away. Once isolated stem cell research centers were scattered around the country and world. Now nearly every university has its stem cell and Regenerative Medicine program, often in multiple medical departments. In response to the Bush administration limiting federal funding of stem cell research, the state of California, established a state tax based funding for stem cell research. Now the state of California’s CIRM (California Institute for Regenerative Medicine) is now a leader in research funding. Prior issues were largely based upon embryonic research and the moral and ethical debate surrounding their use. Today, adult, amniotic, cord blood, and even induced pluripotent stem cells (iPES) are paving the way for other areas besides embryonic stem cells. Even the Vatican supports other stem cell scientific research.
Much knowledge has been gained In our understanding of the pathophysiological nature of arthritis (OA). Regenerative Medicine and stem cells are at the forefront of this field. The patient from Mexico decided stem cells for his hip arthritis made sense.
If you’re in pain or had an injury and are looking for an alternative to surgery, contact us immediately at one of our locations. Our Main Medical Center located in Tampa Bay, Florida (727) 462-5582 or at Beverly Hills, California (310) 975-7033.
