Stem Cell signaling back pain relief treatment options are available in Gilbert, AZ and the surrounding communities of Queen Creek, San Tan Valley, Mesa, and Chandler, AZ by various skilled and top rated physicians. Stop suffering and begin your journey to pain free living.
Overview of Stem Cell Signaling Back Pain Relief
Stem cell signaling allografts are an extremely new and emerging treatment option that evolved based on the success of autologous stem cell therapy for various orthopedic conditions. Stem cell signaling allografts mixed with PRP have some advantages over autologous stem cell treatments. First, the procedure is far less invasive than an extraction of bone marrow or adipose tissue that is necessary to acquire live stem cells from the patients body. The patient also does not need general anesthesia to complete the treatment. Local anesthetics and over the counter analgesics will typically suffice. Secondly, the treatment is much faster to complete and can usually be done within 2 hours in a outpatient setting. Within that 2 hour appointment, the physician is able to complete an medical intake, complete orthopedic exams, palpate the areas of pain, re-create the pain sensation in office, examine the area with musculoskeletal ultrasound, draw the patients blood, process the blood to create PRP, mix the PRP and allograft into solution, and inject the targeted treatment site. Thirdly, the regenerative allograft treatment costs a fraction of the price of an autologous stem cell treatment. Generally speaking, autologous treatments will cost the patient anywhere between $5k-15k, where allograft/PRP treatments cost a small fraction of that. Of course there are downsides that need to be mentioned compared to live stem cells from the body. Mainly, the treatments are extremely new and are only in the beginning phases of clinical study. Broad and extensive research into regenerative allografts is underway but this takes time to play out. Specific products, manufacturers, and protocols need to be studied, refined and standardized over time. With that being said, there are early indications of great potential therapeutic value and thousands of successful case studies. The process works by injecting regenerative allografts mixed with platelet rich plasma from the patients blood into the site of pain or injury. This triggers a complex multi-layered healing event. The patients body will go through localized inflammation, proliferation, and remodeling of connective tissue over the course of weeks to months post treatment.
The injected allograft mixed with PRP may induce many reactions at the site of placement. This can include anti-inflammatory effects, cleaning of cellular debris and waste, immune-modulation, growth factor release, cellular communication, and signaling of local stem cells into the area for connective tissue repair. (1,2,3,4,5,6). This unique mechanism ultimately results in connective tissue healing at the damaged area. Increased function and pain reduction follow over time as structural integrity is improved or restored to the joint and surrounding tissue.
Benefits of Stem Cell Signaling
- Pain Relief
- Quick Recovery Time
- Strengthens Ligaments, Tendons, Cartilage, and Connective Tissue
- Utilizes your Natural Growth Factors and Platelets
Back Pain: Regenerative Case Study
Sally Smith (fictional name) is a 25 year old female who presented to our Chandler / Gilbert, AZ clinic with low back pain of 3 years duration. Her case was being managed by her primary care doctor who had prescribed her Tramadol (pain medication), tizanidine (muscle relaxer), and Ibuprofen (max daily dose). She was still experiencing back pain on a daily basis even though she was quite medicated. The pain originated from a workplace injury 3 years ago that involved a heavy object directly hitting her low back. MRI imaging showed a slipped disc at L4 and she was diagnosed with spondylolisthesis. Sally’s pain had greatly impacted her life and inhibited her from exercising and going to social events with her friends. She came to the clinic wanting pain relief without being on medications for the rest of her life. Her case was assessed and orthopedic physical exams completed, but we could not guarantee complete pain relief without medications.
The assessment was as follows:
- Anterior displaced vertebra at L4 / L5
- Pain 6/10 daily
- Sacroiliac ligament laxity
- Iliolumbar ligament laxity
- Decreased Lumbar range of motion
- Muscle Tenderness around SI Joint bilaterally
We decided Sally was a good candidate for regenerative allografts in PRP solution as long as she was willing to discontinue Ibuprofen during the healing phases after treatment. Ibuprofen is an NSAID and inhibits the inflammatory immune response and cellular recruitment of the treatment. We began treatment by injecting her SI joint, and insertions of the iliolumbar and sacroiliac ligaments with US guided placement at the targeted sites. The injection solution was composed of allograft and Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) with local anesthetic being used beforehand. Sally tolerated the treatment well with minimal pain and bleeding. We did another platelet rich plasma treatment as a follow-up to the regenerative allograft 6 weeks later. We then re-evaluated her case after the completion of 2 treatments, with appropriate healing time post injection. At this point in time, Sally reported her daily pain had decreased to 1/10 and that she had resumed moderate exercising again. This was very exciting to her, as she was a former athlete in high school sports. Sally also reported that she would go days without her Tramadol and only took it occasionally now. Then she revealed to me that she was considering starting a family now, an idea that she never dreamed of previously due to her chronic pain. I was thrilled with the results and we devised a plan to coordinate care with her other physicians to gradually taper her down off both tizanidine and tramadol.
Conclusion
Stem Cell signaling back pain relief allografts with PRP can effective option for low back pain, particularly SI joint dysfunction, and can help patients avoid surgery in some select cases as noted above. Sally had been dealing with back pain for 3 years and was on multiple medications to manage her pain with no hope in sight. Regenerative injections with PRP help the SI joint and ligaments repair and treat the root cause of low back pain. Cartilage, tendons, and ligaments are strengthened and healed, which reduces pain and increases range of motion of the lumbar spine. Regenerative signaling allografts should be considered as an alternative to opioid medications, muscle relaxers and cortisone injections in certain cases. From my experiences, regenerative injections are quite effective and will definitely play a growing role in the evolution of pain management and orthopedic medicine in the years to come. For more information about Regenerative Injection Therapy, referrals to autologous stem cell providers, Platelet Rich Plasma, please contact us at: 480-648-1534
