Stem Cell treatments are considered to be the most advanced application of regenerative medicine. We use the stem cells from the same patient to restore injured or degenerated tissues in various parts of the body where needed. This treatments are so effective that allow us to avoid surgery.
Stem cells are located throughout our body. Areas with the highest concentration of stem cells – otherwise known as “stem cells reservoirs” – are fat and bone marrow. They are undifferentiated multipotent cells that under certain conditions have the ability to be converted into any other type of cells. When there is a lesion or trauma at any point in the body, stem cells are “called” through appropriate neurochemical mechanisms and they begin to move and accumulate at the site of the lesion. Once they arrive at that point, the process of their transformation into cells of the destroyed tissue begins, and thus initiate the regeneration of the area.
Multipotent stem cells that are present in our body can be transformed when needed in each cell type. They can become muscle, skin, ligament, or cartilage cells as well as anything else needed to restore the damage. Stem Cells obey the laws of homeostasis, have intelligence and know what they need in order to create tissue with extreme accuracy. In addition, they can identify any tissue that may be harmful to the body and have the ability to remove it.
How the treatment is performed in our clinic
Stem cells are collected by a special catheter from the chosen point and are placed at the location of the lesion through a needle. Placement is always performed under ultrasound guidance that ensures pinpoint accuracy without having to make an incision. During the treatment the patient is awake and we only provide small doses of local anesthetics. The collection and installation of the stem cells are performed on site and the whole treatment takes about four hours. There is no cultivation of the cells and the entire process is performed at our practice.
The patient is mobile and able to return to his house immediately after the completion of the treatment, while each patient is given specific post-treatment instructions. In general, treatments do not require immobilization and the patient immediately resumes his normal activities. Having avoided an equivalent surgery, the patient is now free from side effects as well as postoperative effects, and eliminates the recovery time that almost always follows a surgery.