Stem Cell Injections....The Next Great Chapter in Medicine

    RICHMOND, VA, February 15, 2023 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Regenerative medicine is a term to describe using special cells called, "stem cells" to help repair the damaged areas in the body that ultimately cause pain. Why would we need these extra "stem cells" when we know that the body already has the ability to repair itself?

Simply put, the human body is an amazing machine in that when the "machine" is running properly and one of the "parts" of the "machine" break, it has the ability to repair itself . The healing is done through a series of complex processes within the cells and tissues of the body. When a hand is cut, it heals with a scab and eventually new skin forms. This happens because there are stem cells in our bodies that work to repair the damage. One of the most powerful cells are called "Mesenchymal Stem Cells, or MSCs". There is a complex series of events that take place in order to repair the injury and the end result with a cut would be new skin formation. When a bone breaks, the same thing happens; stem cells from your body create new bone cells and the fracture heals. If a tendon tears, eventually the fibroblasts in the body form collagen and the tendon heals. When we are children the tissues in the body are able to heal themselves almost perfectly..so here is the issue as Dr. Weiss, DPM explains: 'As we get older or if diseases, such as diabetes or autoimmune diseases affect our health, the body becomes less efficient at healing. The body's response to the injury weakens over time, and especially with age. Our own stem cells become less active and less plentiful which leads to poor healing and prolonged injury and pain." With that being said, the use of placental stem cells to aid in the healing process makes sense!

Traditionally, doctors have used cortisone injections to help with pain and inflammation. Cortisone, or "corticosteroids" are extremely powerful chemicals that limit inflammation, but they DO NOT fix the problem. The body's own stem cells fix the problem. However, cortisone also destroys the body's collagen, and causes breakdown of the tissues. Too many cortisone injections cause many problems:

~Loss of blood supply to the area (avascular necrosis)

~Tendon / Ligament Ruptures

~Severe joint damage (arthritis)

~Osteoporosis

~Loss of skin elasticity

~Loss of fat under the skin

~Endocrine problems: eg., Diabetes

Regenerative Medicine injections, like cortisone, also inhibit inflammation, and continue to act as an anti-inflammatory for many months. But more importantly, they help FIX the problem. They deliver an enormous amount of compounds called "growth factors", which enable the body to start repairing itself. The placental tissues also help prevent scar formation. There are 2 main types of advanced Regenerative Medicine injections:

1) PRP, a/k/a "Platelet Rich Plasma", and 2) Placental tissue.

1. PRP (Platelet Rich Plasma) is when the patient's own blood is taken, placed in a centrifuge, and the concentrated platelets are injected into the injured area. This is occasionally helpful, and requires many injections to achieve the desired result. PRP is "Monoclonal". This means they are less effective in activating the body's own system to repair the damaged tissues.

2. Placental Injections, also known as "Amnion" does not require using the patient's own blood, and does not cause an Immune response or rejection. They are significantly less differentiated than an adult stem cell. In other words, they are much more powerful in helping the injured tissues heal.

Placenta-derived cells have properties that are Osteogenic (bone-healing), and Adipogenic (process that forms chondrocytes, myocytes, and "good fat" cells). These all work together to prevent scar tissue, and heal the injured cells.

We are now able to inject the powerful MSCs obtained from placental tissue into the injured area to start the healing process. These MSCs will control inflammation, regenerate damaged tissue, and regenerate a healthy blood supply to the area (angiogenic). In addition, they also fight off bacteria. More or less, MSCs are the "Navy Seals" of our bodies.

MSCs come from our bone marrow. When we are babies, 1 out of every 10,000 bone marrow cells are MSCs. When we are in our 80's, this ratio declines to 1 out of every 2,000,000 cells! This is one of the main reasons why adults have injuries that don't heal, or take a long time to heal.

This is why these Placental Injections are so amazing. These "supercells" are placed directly into the injured tissue, and the healing process begins, and begins rapidly and efficiently.

A 54 year old patient, with a broken fifth metatarsal, came in for a placental stem cell injection to avoid surgery. She states, "Dr. Weiss is fantastic, the stem cell injection he administered to me saved me from undergoing surgery and having plates and screws installed."

Another patient, who was diagnosed with Tibialis Posterior Tendonitis tells us, "I am so glad I decided to get the stem cell injection, 6 weeks later I have my mobility back and my pain is gone!"

West End Foot and Ankle is the premier regenerative medicine treatment center for foot and ankle problems. Although Dr. Weiss is an accomplished, board certified surgeon (American College of Foot and Ankle Surgery), he strives to keep his patients out of the operating room using new technology and regenerative medicine techniques. He is one of the few podiatrists who is a member of the American Academy of Stem Cell Physicians.

Call today at (804) 346-1779 for a consultation. More information can be seen on our website

See how it is done by watching one of our regenerative medicine videos here.

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