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What Is Stem Cell Therapy and Its Benefits?
By Dr. Benjamin Busch, DO, MBA
December 16, 2022
What is Stem Cell Therapy?
Stem Cell Therapy is a type of medical remedy that involves the use of stem cells to repair or replace damaged or diseased cells in the body. This therapy has been used to treat a wide range of conditions.
Stem cells are special types of cells that differentiate into various types of cells and can repair and regenerate damaged or aging tissue.
Stem Cell Therapy is typically performed by injecting stem cells into the injured area. While Stem Cell Therapy is still a relatively new and emerging field, early studies have shown promising results for its use in improving the appearance of the skin and reducing the signs of aging and regenerating tissue throughout the body.
What are stem cells?
Stem cells are originator-type cells from which all other cells are made. They have the potential to differentiate into any cell of an organism and can self-renew or regenerate. This process is called differentiation. Differentiated cells can function as brain cells, muscle/tendon or ligaments, blood cells and bone or cartilage cells.
Stem cells are unique — meaning there is no other cell in the body capable of renewal on its own.
Understanding how stem cells work in the body
The stem cell’s natural function of differentiation is the body’s own superpower against degradation, illness and aging. Stem cell differentiation can be simply described as a cellular repair system. By changing a cell to a dedicated-specialized cell type with a specific function, it can improve and enhance the way our body responds to illness, injury or condition.
Stem cells work in 3 powerful ways:
- Stem cells replenish and renew our cell population throughout our entire life.
- Stem cells have a protective nature and guard injured or damaged cells in our body.
- Stem cells initiate a regeneration process and stimulate the creation of additional cell types.
Regenerative medicine and stem cells
Restorative medicine, or orthobiologics, can be defined as the practice of using technologies and techniques to trigger the replacement or regeneration of cells to combat degenerated or injured tissues. Stem Cell Therapy is an exciting and highly effective alternative to many surgical procedures. Often when other treatments and even surgery have failed, stem cells injected to the area of injury can:
- Initiate tissue regeneration by stimulating repair and regrowth of damaged muscle, cartilage, nerves and many tissues
- Cellular reprograming to promote youthful cellular function
- Reduce pain, inflammation and improve autoimmunity
- Improve mobility
- Improved mitochondrial function – the “powerhouse” of the cell
- Revive damaged cells with anti-apoptotic functions.
Stem cell types
Generally, stem cells are often used interchangeably, but they have distinct functions, uses and properties depending upon the origin and type. Typically, in regenerative medicine practices, stem cells are obtained either from the bone marrow, adipose tissue (fat) or sourced ethically from umbilical cords that are sourced from what would otherwise be post-natal medical waste.
Mesenchymal stem cells
Mesenchymal stem cells, or MSCs, can make diverse types of cells. Some examples include bone, cartilage, nerves or any other tissue. These types of cells can help encourage tissue regeneration for a variety of diseases and injuries. After birth, MSCs are found in the bone marrow and are important for both making and repairing tissue throughout the body. Unfortunately, stem cell harvesting from bone marrow requires a painful procedure to obtain the cellular material from within a patient’s bones. However, the emergence of umbilical cord stem cells has proved to be superior — and much more comfortable for the patient.
Hematopoetic stem cells
Hematopoetic stem cells, or HSC’s, are the precursor cells to the immune system. These cells are traditionally used as therapies for blood related disorders, but also increasingly for autoimmune and inflammation conditions. HSC therapy can “reset” the immune system by replacing defective immune cells with healthy ones.
Adipose stem cells
These are taken from the patient’s subcutaneous adipose tissue (fat cells) via a small liposuction procedure. The cells are treated to dissolve the fat and stem cells are obtained. The processing of adipose stem cells requires enough manipulation that the FDA labeled it a drug and has stopped its use.
So, the current legal “in office” stem cell uses are bone marrow aspirate, where a painful trocar is pushed through your bone into the marrow, or Wharton’s jelly umbilical cord stem cells which are very easy, have a low-immune response and a great differentiator with growth factors.
Umbilical cord stem cells
The tissue surrounding the umbilical cord at birth is called Wharton’s Jelly. This substance contains high levels of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) ethically sourced from what would’ve been post-natal waste. Wharton’s Jelly MSCs have high differentiation potential and notable immuno-specific properties.
When injected into damaged tissues, Wharton’s Jelly may help regenerate injured tissues and stimulate the strengthening of degenerative cells. In addition to the high MSC concentration, umbilical cord tissue contains significant amounts of growth factors, cytokines, hyaluronic acid and exosomes.
- Growth factors present in Wharton’s Jelly are known to encourage the growth and survival of bone cells, cartilage cells, tendon cells, blood vessel cells and muscle cells.
- Cytokines found in Wharton’s Jelly play key roles in inhibiting inflammation, controlling pain and promoting wound healing.
- Hyaluronic acid content in Wharton’s jelly combats musculoskeletal degenerative diseases.
When indicated for a patient needing orthopedic care, ViveWell’s team of talented providers get excellent results with responsibly sourced umbilical stem cells from Wharton’s Jelly.
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References
- Centeno CJ, Pastoriza SM. Past, Current, And Future Interventional OrthoBiologics Techniques, and How They Relate to Regenerative Rehabilitation: A Clinical Commentary. Int J Sports Phys Ther. 2020 Apr;15(2):301-325. PMID: 32269863; PMCID: PMC7134348.
- Gupta A, El-Amin SF 3rd, Levy HJ, Sze-Tu R, Ibim SE, Maffulli N. Umbilical cord-derived Wharton’s jelly for regenerative medicine applications. J Orthop Surg Res. 2020 Feb 13;15(1):49. doi: 10.1186/s13018-020-1553-7. PMID: 32054483; PMCID: PMC7017504.
- Kingery MT, Manjunath AK, Anil U, Strauss EJ. Bone Marrow Mesenchymal Stem Cell Therapy and Related Bone Marrow-Derived OrthoBiologics Therapeutics. Curr Rev Musculoskeletal Med. 2019 Dec;12(4):451-459. doi: 10.1007/s12178-019-09583-1. PMID: 31749105; PMCID: PMC6942063.
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Disclaimer: All statements and opinions provided are for educational and informational purposes, not for medical diagnosis. As with all medical treatments and procedures, results may vary on an individual basis. ViveWell follows all FDA guidelines related to the treatments provided. You’re encouraged to consult with your primary care provider before undergoing any treatment programs offered by ViveWell. Some of our therapies are not FDA-approved. During your personal consultation, the benefits and risks of any recommended therapies will be reviewed with you.