Do you have painful arthritis that’s inhibiting your quality of life? Arthritis is the most common joint complaint in the US. As baby boomers age, the number of people with arthritis is projected to balloon from 30 million to 67 million by 2030.
Perhaps you’ve stopped playing your favorite sport or no longer get out in the garden because of joint pain in your hip or knee. You may have tried steroid injections, but too many of them can damage your joints. Other remedies haven’t worked well enough to let you maintain an active lifestyle.
Regenerative medicine has revolutionized orthopedic practice and offers additional therapy opportunities for arthritis patients. Our board-certified orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Jonathan Shults, with Coastal Empire Orthopedics, is trained in the latest advances in regenerative medicine that can ease joint pain. Dr. Shults may recommend amniotic stem cell injections for your joint pain
The amniotic membrane is located in the placenta and develops in the uterus during a woman’s pregnancy. The membrane generates the amniotic fluid that protects the developing fetus.
How is amniotic fluid from the placenta connected to joint pain? Researchers discovered that the fluid, placenta, and umbilical cord contain large amounts of healing substances, including stem cells, proteins, hyaluronic acid, and growth factors. Mothers in good health provide consent to donate their amniotic fluid and tissue in the placenta and/or umbilical cord after the birth of a child. Scientists purify the material so that it can be used for healing purposes.
Doctors who provide wound care have been using injections with purified amniotic fluid to help heal wounds in body tissue for many years. Researchers then discovered that amniotic stem cell injections could also help patients with arthritis. Amniotic stem cells help your body heal itself, rushing nutrients to the site of your joint damage, calming inflammation, increasing cartilage health, and reducing pain.
Yes. Although much more research is needed, recent clinical trials and other data show that amniotic stem cell injections are safe and can provide pain relief if you suffer from arthritis.
Orthopedic surgeons are finding that amniotic stem cell injections are safer than steroid injections. Steroid injections aren’t always safe for diabetic patients because they raise blood sugar levels; amniotic stem cell injections don’t. Amniotic injections are also safer for patients with compromised immune systems.
This type of injection is the same type of simple procedure as a steroid injection but uses a different substance. If you have knee or hip arthritis, tendonitis, or certain other types of joint pain, you may benefit from amniotic stem cell injections.
Call Coastal Empire Orthopedics or book an appointment today through our online portal for all your orthopedic needs.
