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Stem Cell Strategy to Spinal Cord Injuries: The New Frontier
Knee Stem Cell Treatment - Spinal cord injuries are injuries that occur to any level of the vertebrae. Although the hard bones from the spinal column protect the soft tissues with the spinal cord, vertebrae can still be broken or dislocated in many different ways and cause traumatic problems for the spinal cord. Spinal cord injuries vary within their severity, but almost inevitably lead to various forms of compromised functionality as the spinal cord is in effect the key pathway for information to travel around the human body. Just what body functions are impaired by the injury will depend on the location of the spine that's been damaged and the extent that the spine may be affected. Although serious impacts such as falls and car accidents account for many vertebrae injuries, tumors growing near the column can also damage sensitive nerve tissue and possess the same effects.
Knee Stem Cell Treatment - For many years scientists have been attempting to try and find a way to remedy the different ailments that spinal-cord injuries can bring, however with limited success. However, recently a pioneering new technologies have emerged that is helping many people around the world regain part, it not exclusively, of their previously lost mobility. That treatment solutions are the use of stem cells.
What are Stem Cells and Stem Cell Treatments?
Knee Stem Cells - Stem cells are simply in all multi cellular organisms and are characterized by their ability to distinguish into a diverse range of specialized cells after they divide and renew themselves. They may be remarkable for their capacity to regenerate themselves into just about any human cell. Their use in the treatment of various diseases and types of conditions, from Leukemia to Multiple Sclerosis, is now becoming more common. Depending on the condition, stem cells can be transplanted into the patient to aid renew and regenerate previously damaged cells, giving patients renewed hope when, before, no reliable treatment existed.
This principle is now being applied to treating spinal cord injuries using stem cells, plus instances where the patient has not experienced a complete spinal-cord injury, i.e. a complete severing of the spinal-cord leading to a loss of function below the 'neurological' level. There has been positive results in helping patients recover greater sensory and physiological ability.
Spinal Cord Injury: How Stem Cell Treatment Works
When there is trauma to the vertebrae, myelopathy (damage to the fibres that carry messages to and from the brain) has occurred. These 'myelinated fibre tracts' will be the focus of stem cell treatment, and are the nerve cells how the treatment helps to regenerate. The procedure usually follows three phases and often requires no longer when compared to a period of around five weeks in health care for monitoring:
Phase one requires the harvesting of stem cells. The cells are extracted from a fetus's umbilical cord. They are then put through a process whereby they are isolated and purified prior to being finally cultured to be suitable for clinical use.
Phase two will be the transplantation of the stem cells. This is accomplished in one of 3 ways:
1) Lumbar puncture - an operation used where stem cells could be injected directly into the spine.
2) Intravenous injection- stem cells are injected into the patient's vein.
3) Tissue injection - direct injection into target tissues.
Phase three necessitates the monitoring of the patient to make sure there are no adverse negative effects. The only side effects reported to date were caused by the lumbar puncture, and never the stem cell treatment itself, with simply 15% of patients reporting mild headaches. During the time under medical supervision, patients undergo various physiotherapy activities along with other treatments as necessary.
Stem Cell Research and Treatment in China
China is fast-becoming a world leader in stem cell research, and it is now a major centre for that stem cell treatment of many diseases and types of conditions. The Chinese government has poured millions of dollars into research on regenerative medicine, and that investment has really borne fruit in the last few years. As a result of this expanded investment, Chinese contributions to scientific journals on regenerative medicine topics leapt from 37 in year 2000 to 1,116 in 2008, exceeded only through the contributions of experts in the united states, Germany, Japan and the UK.
The government in addition has aggressively recruited high-caliber scientists trained abroad in pursuit of its ambition to turn into a world leader in the field. Indeed, the McLaughlin-Rotman Centre for Global Health commented that, "the government's policy of attracting highly educated Chinese nationals returning to China has contributed significantly to the country's success within the field." The authors were "amazed that the majority the top Chinese researchers in the regenerative medicine field had been educated in the US as well as the UK and gained extensive practical knowledge there in innovative research."
Although before treatment in China may have been considered risky because of lax health and safety laws, the past few years have seen an increase in legislation protecting the sufferer, and improving the functionality of clinics. Since 2009, evidence of safety and efficacy through numerous studies is required by China's Secretary of state for Health for all stem cell and gene therapies, making sure Chinese clinics meet international standards inside their qualifications and methodology. At the time of January 2010, about 1,500 patients had received botox cosmetic injections for spinal cord injury at one Beijing clinic alone, including roughly 1,000 foreigners.
In addition to this, China has long held a place at the forefront of stem cell research to deal with all manner of conditions. A few of China's notable contributions to stem cell research are:
By transferring the nucleus of the human skin cell in to the immature ovum cell of the rabbit, researchers from your Shanghai hospital successfully produced embryonic human cells.
China to date has created at least 25 human embryonic stem cell lines (some estimate over 70 stem cell lines), four of which are of a specialized type that in those days only two other groups worldwide had managed to create.
Harboured several human tissue types, created artificially, including circulation system, tendon, bone, cartilage, skin, cornea and muscle fibre.
Furthermore, Chinese researchers are currently involved with a myriad of projects to assist aid patients through regenerative medicine and stem cell therapy. Below are several projects underway within Chinese institutions:
ChinaSCINet, a consortium of 27 medical facilities, are beginning phase 2 numerous studies to test the efficacy and safety of utilizing cord blood stem cells and oral lithium to take care of about 40 patients with vertebrae injuries.
Clinical trials are underway on the use of stem cell therapies to treat patients of heart attacks, artery obstruction, and liver and neural diseases.
Research is underway on the potential utilization of stem cells to treat heart, liver and blood diseases, eye cataracts, also to combat aging.
Success Stories from the Treatment of Spinal Cord Injuries in China
Many individuals of all ages and with varying degrees of injury have received stem cell treatment in China over the last few years. It is important to keep in mind that not every patient will react and more, and that the age of the patient and the severity of the damage greatly affect the likelihood of recovery. However, there were many success stories from both Chinese citizens and foreigners.
Before her treatment began in January 2006, Ms. Pai, 38, from Shenyang couldn't move her body underneath the injury site, and was unable to control her going number 2. Within 8 months from the treatment she regained movement both in her legs, could bend her knees (even though toes of one foot were still paralyzed) and was even able to walk with crutches.
Razvan Iordache, a Romanian citizen aged 30, travelled to China for many bouts of stem cell treatment following an accident while diving right into a river that left him paralyzed from the neck down. Following his treatments, Razan reported in 2008 that not only could he are now using his arms almost normally, and could feel pain in many of his fingers, he could "even feel warm and cold" sensations. He proceeded to add the following: "Now I will control my urine for Ten minutes and the sensation for both urine and stool is more preferable. Generally, my system is more powerful than before."
Donald Maricelli, a 54 yr old US citizen, a break down spinal cord injury following a fall in 2002. He underwent a surgical procedure to correct his lack of sensation in his lower body, however there were complications and Donald remained in a worse state than before. Before arriving for treatment in China, he was still unable to walk unaided. Following the treatment, which commenced in November 2007, Donald has created significant improvements. He regained sensation throughout nearly all of his abdomen, and also the sensation in his legs also improved. Particularly important, the sensation on the bottom of his feet went back, helping him simply to walk without tripping. Most important to Donald was that he regained control and strength in the left leg, allowing him simply to walk significant distances and indicate prolonged periods of time.
There are numerous more success stories from patients that have received this pioneering treatment to assist correct varying levels of spinal cord injury. However, it is always important to remember that not all patients recover exactly the same functions in the same time frame. A lot of hard work adopts the post treatment rehabilitation, also it takes great drive, determination and ambition to allow the body to get back to more regular functionality. However, the task being done by scientists and clinics in China has shown time and again that stem cells hold a critical key to the future of helping people with spinal cord injuries recover their lost functions. Each month, more and more people are travelling to various cities round the country that offer different packages of treatment depending on precisely what injury has been inflicted. The level of service has improved greatly in recent years, and continues to improve every month, meaning that those unfortunate enough to have suffered spinal cord injuries need no longer feel theirs is really a lost cause. There exists a very real chance how the standard of living of any patient may be improved with little pain, little hospital time, and a little motivation. The existing evidence shows that stem cell therapy for spinal cord injuries is the solution.
