Connect
← Return to Stem cells for chronic lumbar pain
Discussion
Stem cells for chronic lumbar pain
Spine Health | Last Active: 12 hours ago | Replies (21)Comment receiving replies
I have been told my multiple experts that stem cells and AI will be the things that really change the trajectory of the treatment of chronic back and other musculoskeletal issues. I have been told that there is little to no evidence based high quality research at this point to help direct spinal care treatment so we're all just guessing and hoping. AI should help with that in the future. There are pretty compelling indicators that stem cell could be a game changer. Unfortunately, after looking into to this the only stem cell treatment that is effective for the back (hip and knee may be different) is using fetal stem cell cells ( from miscarriages)which is not permitted in this country. My pain doctor uses stem cells here for knee but said I'd be wasting my money because it's not the effective stem cells for spine. He urged me to go to a clinic in Columbia where they use fetal stem cells. He's had patients go there with excellent results.
Replies to "I have been told my multiple experts that stem cells and AI will be the things..."
@kdks99 There has been a lot of hype about stem cells for spine issues. I met a woman who is paralyzed and wheelchair bound who went to another country and had stem cell injections that didn't change anything. There is real research going on at Mayo Clinic with Dr. Bydon, a spine neurosurgeon. He has had some success with patients with spinal cord injuries and regeneration with stem cells. One of the issues with the spinal discs is that they have no blood supply. The vessels that allowed a child's spine to grown disappear in adulthood. Bone can heal and fuse and grow more cells, but I'm not aware that a cartilage disc would have that ability at this time in medical advancement. A lot depends on blood supply in healing the body and oxygen supply is needed. The research is exciting at Mayo, and worth reading about.
https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/study-documents-safety-improvements-from-stem-cell-therapy-after-spinal-cord-injury/
https://www.mayo.edu/research/labs/neuro-informatics/overview
A discovery as significant as this should be published in a medical journal, so that would be where to search to see if real spine healing with stem cells is possible and why. There just isn't enough information, and there are a always people willing to take money to try something. Patients have hope, so they are willing to try unproven methods. There may be risks involved such as infection or a misplaced injection that causes damage. It's something to think about. I wonder what keeps a stem cell from differentiating into a cancer cell? We just don't know enough. Perhaps in the future, this information may change.
Connect
Thanks John. I wonder what Colombian clinic he was told had good results for back pain? One additional question relates to age and efficacy in octogenarians, for example.