When pets have osteoarthritis (OA), veterinarians often recommend the same treatment plan that humans with OA are encouraged to follow: weight loss, exercise and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs). But when these traditional methods of arthritis treatment fail in their dogs, some pet owners are turning to an option not yet available for people – stem cell therapy.
In the cutting-edge treatment, a veterinarian surgically harvests about two tablespoons of fat cells from the dog’s body and sends them to a lab. After the stem cells are isolated and returned within 24 hours, the vet injects them back into the dog’s joints that have arthritis.
The hope is the injected cells will regenerate damaged joint tissue, but once they are injected it is not clear what they are doing in the joint, says Farshid Guilak, PhD, professor of orthopaedic surgery and biomedical engineering at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C. A growing number of researchers, including Guilak, suspect they may help by reducing inflammation.
"There is a theory that is getting more and more support that these stem cells produce anti-inflammatory cytokines," says Guilak, who is studying stem cells in mice with arthritis.
Regardless of how the treatment might work, many pet owners are convinced it does. According to pet-owner surveys conducted by Vet-Stem, the only U.S. company that is currently processing fat stem cells for veterinarians, approximately 75 percent of dogs treated for arthritis have an improvement in quality of life after the treatment with possible relief lasting anywhere from six months to one year.
For veterinarians, however, the jury's still out on the therapy's usefulness. Some veterinarians don’t believe the cost – approximately $3,000 – as well as the risks that accompany any surgical procedure, are worth the limited success rate.
“We don’t know if it’s even as good as NSAIDs [at relieving pain] and it certainly costs a lot more,” says James Cook, professor of orthopaedic surgery at the University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine in Columbia. “Until I see a lot better evidence, we don’t use it and I don’t recommend it.”
Dr Mark Greenberg in Cherry Hill, Nj does fat stem cell regeneration.
I have osteo both hips...R hip worse.
I have not had fat stem cell therapy yet....pricey. $5,000 each treatment and he said I would need two. That is for one hip of course. Holding out a little longer.
I have had several Prolotherapy injections and PRP therapy. I have had a significant improvement. However I would like to have the fat cell therapy sometime this year.
I had most of my prolotherapy PRP treatments in Nashville Tn. My last PRP was by Dr Greenberg. Some improvement with that also.
But I feel from what I have read on this topic that Andipose fat cell is the way to go...
Deb
Kate
My grandma and I have this dog that we rescued of the high way about a year ago. he's a german shepard, and his previous owners before we found him beat him and miss treated him; he has barely any teeth and he was on a chain and has chain indentions around his neck also he was on a barking collar so he can't bark like he is supposed too. Anyways my question is how do we get one of the Leg braces for his back leg/hip because we took him to the vet and they said that within the next year he could lose complete use of his back hip, Bizmarc (the dog) is a good dog and he's very protective. In your May/June of 2010 article a woman Kate Titus had a dog who has knee, hip and spine OA and she has a leg brace made for him and we really really really need one. if you can help us or give us any advise on this please contact us.
Thanks.
Good Day
I fond your link casual when I was searching for Stem cell therapy to use for some of my patients such as Osteoarthritis and Multiple Sclerosis. One of my patient is a well-known complicated poliomyelitis and severe Osteoarthritis at sacro-iliac joint and knee joints. The pain is so severe that he cannot sit on chair even a short time. This exaggerated pain started since 2oo8.if he lays on his abdomen, sever pain will be started and any medications doesn’t response to control his pain. To break down his pain, there is just a solution which is using morphine derivative which me and the patient are not satisfy it. The orthopedist surgeon visited him and according consultation, the intervention of surgery isn’t benefit and impossible. So I would like to know is there any stem cell treatment for Osteoarthritis which you could provide us? I need more information about this treatment .If I want to share these sorts of treatment, how I can receive the treatment and how much would it cost? I also would like to know the process of treatment and percentages of health after treatment. I will be grateful if I receive detail information about Osteoarthritis and Multiple Sclerosis. Truly Yours,
Dr. Jalil Foud MD
E Mail: drjalil@cpap-iq.com
Clinic.ash60@gmai.com
MSN: clinic.jalil@yahoo.com
Tel: + 1 718 509 9292
Skype: jalilfoud
Miami Beach, Florida 33154 and received non-traditional therapy injections. At the time I couldn't bend my knee to step up to the next step or down to the next step. After the treatments I am able to go up but still can't bend my knee really far enough to go down the stairs without pain. I would like to find a doctor closer to me who does this kind of therapy. I live in the Philadelphia Pa, Wilmington Delaware area in New Jersey. Can you give me the name of anyone who specializes in this?
I am a pharmacist. I understand OA, drug treatments available, but would LOVE to hear that new therapies are being tried. Please share your sucess stories with me.
So, I too want to be in a research study for self adipose tissue-mesenchymal SC use for arthritis.
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