Retinal diseases like Age-Related Macular Degeneration (AMD), Stargardt’s Macular Dystrophy and Retinitis Pigmentosa can lead to permanent vision loss. Stem cell therapy offers hope of treatment in other medical fields – perhaps offering the promise of cure in one form or another.

Current treatments for eye diseases, including medications to slow disease progression and retinal prosthetics, cannot fully restore lost vision.

What is Stem Cell Therapy?

Regenerative medicine uses stem cell therapy to stimulate new tissue and organ growth and speed healing of injuries or conditions such as chronic pain, arthritis and various musculoskeletal issues. Stem cell therapy is one form of regenerative medicine which utilizes concentrated stem cells to activate your own natural healing mechanisms.

There are various stem cells present throughout the body, specializing in blood, bone and cartilage tissue. Stem cells may eventually differentiate into specific cell types – liver cells or retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells that comprise macula in eyes. Studies have demonstrated that RPE-derived stem cells can slow or even stop macular degeneration progression.

Stem cells may also be harvested from bone marrow or amnion and injected directly into damaged muscles, ligaments, tendons and bones to enhance the body’s natural ability to heal itself. This minimally invasive outpatient procedure takes less than an hour; patients can immediately resume normal activity following this treatment that will speed recovery while also decreasing pain levels.

Many patients can benefit from stem cell therapy to alleviate painful conditions like shin splints, tennis elbow and knee osteoarthritis. Studies have demonstrated how stem cells can effectively alleviate their discomfort as well as repair ligaments and tendons damaged during these injuries. Furthermore, stem cell therapy has even been successfully utilized against autoimmune diseases like arthritis, lupus and diabetes.

These diseases occur when the immune system attacks its own tissues, cells or organs. When this happens, stem cells can help replace damaged ones to allow patients to function normally and continue living their lives as before.

Although some studies have had success, most therapies remain in their early stages of development due to a lack of funding, regulations and oversight. Because of this it’s vital that you find a physician with experience using stem cell therapy – specifically certified by the American Board of Regenerative Medicine.

How Does Stem Cell Therapy Work?

Stem cell therapy enables doctors to generate new cells that will replace damaged ones, thus stimulating the body’s natural healing processes and alleviating various ailments, such as arthritis pain, spinal cord injuries, nerve damage, fibromyalgia and more.

As part of an average procedure, your physician will first clean and numb the area to be treated. Next, using x-ray guidance, adipose-derived stem cells are injected directly into the affected area with no discomfort experienced afterwards; typically patients can return to regular activities immediately afterwards.

Stem cells may also help treat chronic back pain by reducing inflammation, the main source of discomfort in the body. Furthermore, stem cells can improve range of motion so you can move more easily while aiding healing processes after an injury or surgery to speed recovery time and get you back to life quicker.

One of the most promising applications of stem cell therapy is treating age-related macular degeneration (AMD). This condition causes vision loss due to degeneration of retinal pigment epithelium and photoreceptors. Human embryonic and adult stem cells have shown to reverse dry AMD by replacing lost photoreceptors or secreting factors that promote photoreceptor proliferation.

Researchers recently developed an induced pluripotent stem cell-derived retinal pigment epithelium treatment for a clinical trial. This first-of-its-kind treatment in the US to restore vision in those suffering advanced macular degeneration has demonstrated promise by significantly reducing vision loss among those who had suffered most severely from macular degeneration. Results from this study will be used to create therapies to prevent progression to wet macular degeneration by restoring visual function; further research and innovation as well as rigorous clinical trials will be necessary in order to ascertain both safety and efficacy of new cell-based therapies

How Safe is Stem Cell Therapy?

Although many individuals may use stem cells at home or through clinics for treatment of macular degeneration or any other condition, it’s important to be aware that their use has not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Individuals seeking this therapy should only consult licensed doctors who belong to medical organizations with proven success at treating patients using this therapy.

Stem cells are multipotent cells with the capacity to differentiate into various specialized cell types, including bone cells, cartilage cells, fat tissue and muscles. Stem cells can be found throughout your body – in your bone marrow, umbilical cord, adipose tissues, developing tooth buds and amniotic fluid – while mesenchymal stem cells are specifically found within skeletal tissues like bones and connective tissues like ligaments and tendons – where they help repair damaged or diseased joints while relieving pain from injury by stimulating cartilage regrowth or by reducing pain from injury-related injuries caused by injury-related injuries caused by injury-inflammations from injury pain-inflammatory responses from injuries caused by injury-inflammatory responses caused by damaged or diseased joints; they’re found within bone marrow, umbilical cord, adipose tissues, developing tooth buds and amniotic fluid. Mesenchymal stem cells are found specifically within skeletal tissues of body including bones as well as ligaments/tendons where connective tissues like ligaments/tendons’ connective tissues like ligaments/tendons’ pain relief while alleviating inflammation caused by injuries through stimulating cartilage regrowth; they’re used by stimulating cartilage regeneration whilst also relieving pain caused by injury by stimulating cartilage regeneration as well as decreasing pain/inflammation caused by injury by stimulating regrowth as well as relieving pain from injuries by stimulating cartilage regrowth of course!

Stem cell research offers hope to those suffering from various eye conditions and diseases that cause vision loss, including age-related macular degeneration, Stargardt’s macular dystrophy, retinitis pigmentosa and diabetic retinopathy. Substituting dying retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells with ones from human embryonic stem cells or induced pluripotent stem cells has been demonstrated to rescue photoreceptors and restore normal vision in animal models of macular degeneration.

Researchers are exploring how stem cells may be utilized in ophthalmology for other conditions as well, including corneal scarring and blindness associated with corneal infections as well as to reduce congenital cataract incidence in newborn babies. Stem cell therapy for traumatic spinal cord injuries has proven to be successful with some patients regaining motor function by walking or moving their limbs again after receiving stem cells treatment.

Stem cells possessing the unique capacity to self-renew and differentiate into specific cell types have the power to transform many areas of medicine. But as with any new technology, proper application must be ensured in order to guarantee patient safety and optimize results.

What Can Stem Cell Therapy Do for You?

Stem cells have become a cornerstone of modern medicine for treating damaged or diseased parts of the body. This form of healing, called regenerative medicine, involves using stem cells to regenerate damaged or diseased tissue using them as replacement cells and replace them.

Stem cell therapy can be utilized to effectively treat many different medical conditions, as stem cells have the capacity to transform into different kinds of cells – for instance skin or muscle cells – thus providing repair or replacement services, thus decreasing symptoms and improving health.

Stem cell therapy may also be effective at treating autoimmune conditions, including Lupus, Rheumatoid Arthritis or Diabetes. These conditions arise when your immune system mistakenly attacks its own tissues, cells or organs resulting in inflammation that wreaks havoc with health. Stem cell therapy provides relief and promotes improvement for its patients suffering from these diseases.

Stem cell therapy can also be an effective treatment option for chronic pain caused by disease or injury, including both conditions that persist over time and those that occur suddenly. By injecting stem cells directly into the affected areas of the body, stem cell injection can alleviate discomfort while speeding healing processes and hastening recovery times.

Stem cells can also be utilized to treat debilitating conditions like Lyme disease. This debilitating chronic inflammatory condition occurs when your body becomes infected by Borrelia bacteria, and stem cells may help alleviate symptoms like joint pain, fatigue, digestive troubles and cognition issues caused by this illness.

Stem cell therapy offers many advantages, but not all stem cell treatments have been shown to be safe and effective. When selecting a stem cell therapist for yourself or a loved one, make sure they have experience and have completed clinical trials, to ensure the treatment procedure complies with health regulations and will meet safety expectations. To gain more insight into how stem cell therapy could benefit your health, set up an appointment with Dr. Steven Struhl of Regenerative Orthopaedics today and set up a consultation consultation!