The latest treatment he’s found to be very effective is a regenerative therapy using stem cells from amniotic fluid.
Amniotic stem cell injections are successful in treating hard-to-treat chronic pain conditions, such as arthritis, old injuries that won’t heal, and joint, tendon, and ligament issues.
Stem cells are cells that have the potential to replicate themselves and regenerate tissues. When they are injected into a painful area, they repress inflammation—the root cause of pain—and grow into new tissue that replaces the damaged tissue.
While treatment with amniotic stem cells is not always permanent, it can give people years of pain-free, functional movement, Dr. Elbaz says. The risk of complications from stem cell treatment is also very low because infections rarely develop from a small injection area. Also, unlike with blood transfusions or organ transplants, there is no need to screen for compatibility of stem cells before treatment. Stem cell donors are always screened for health, however.
How It Works
For the amniotic stem cell treatment, amniotic fluid is collected at the time of birth from pre-screened women who have agreed to donate. The stem cells are then sterilized, freeze-dried, and shipped to the doctor’s office, where they are reconstituted for injection.
Given the extent of the process needed to obtain and preserve the stem cells, the treatment is relatively expensive. Because of this, and the fact that the treatment is potent, Dr. Elbaz reserves it for patients who have more advanced pain conditions.
Alternatively, for patients (especially younger ones) with more moderate conditions, treatments with platelet-rich plasma (PRP) are very successful, he said.
Platelets, the smallest type of blood cell, are the body’s first responders to any injury. Platelets cause the blood to clot and signal to the body to start a cascade of healing responses in an injured area, including attracting the body’s own stem cells.
