Repairing damaged joints with stem cells
Pain in the joints quickly puts an end to sporting ambitions. A therapy with stem cells can help those affected to become more mobile again – and thereby increase zest for life.
The warm season makes you want to exercise outdoors. But the pleasure quickly ends when the hips, ankles, or knees hurt. Often these are signs of weakening or inflammation of a joint. Strains such as during sports can lead to further damage. If protection and appropriate therapy do not lead to an improvement in the long term, the damaged joint needs to be replaced by an artificial joint.
In certain cases, there is a gentle alternative to joint replacement surgery: Stem cells from body fat can contribute to the regeneration of damaged joints. “By transplanting the patient’s stem cells to the damaged joint we can help the body to remedy the cause of the joint problem. Consequently, the patient’s natural joint can be preserved,” explains the Vienna-based doctor DDr. Heinrich.
Celebrity hairdresser Karl Plasil enjoys cycling on the mountain bike without pain after stem cell therapy. DDr. Heinrich: “The therapy supports the body to remedy the cause of the joint problem.”
In the course of the treatment, which is performed on an outpatient basis under local anesthesia, a small amount of fat is harvested. The stem cells separated thereby are injected directly into the area of the affected joint. “For people with limited mobility and chronic joint pain, increased mobility and pain relief mean increased quality for life,” says DDr. Heinrich.
More information: DDr. Karl-Georg Heinrich, Phone: +43 1 532 18 01, www.stemcelltherapy.cc
Published in Unsere Generation on July 3, 2018.