Recently there was news regarding Tiger Woods receiving Platelet Rich Plasma Injections for his knee to accelerate recovery. This brought even more attention to this treatment. A good article that clarifies some info is:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/johnny-benjamin/tiger-woods-dr-galea-goss_b_393880.html
After meeting at the Orthohealing Center in Los Angeles, Dr Ryu went on to treat a prolific basketball player, Choo Seung-Gyun. More recently Dr Ryu compiled data on his PRP injections & presented it at T-cell Bio Inc Stem cell Conference in Seoul Korea attended by 500 physicians. We look forward to more international collaborations to share our experiences to advance the field of stem cell therapies and biologics including PRP . 
An article in the NY times today discusses Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) and tendon injuries. Dr Steven Sampson at the Orthohealing Center in Los Angeles is a principal investigator in the tennis elbow study that was mentioned in the NY Times today.
While the article focuses on PRP treatment for tendon injuries, Dr Sampson is publishing research very soon on platelet rich plasma therapy for knee osteoarthritis. 12 month data has been collected.
Mimicking Human Cartilage to Repair a Knee
According to the New York Times, Orthomimetics, developed a scaffold approved for use in Europe from a collaboration between the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the University of Cambridge.The scaffold is off the shelf & allows stem cells to be absored to regenerate cartilage.
My former colleague Bert Mandelbaum MD was quoted. This treatment may lower the expense typically involved and may be available to more patients because of less preparation time. This is just an example of the progress being made in cartilage repair. Ultimately I feel there will be a trend towards more injection based cartilage repair with less invasive surgery. As technology is advancing with improved live imaging, doctors wont have to open up a joint or insert an obtrusive scope to properly treat it.
Dr Steven Sampson of the Orthohealing Center was featured last night in Los Angeles.
The story demonstrates how Platelet Rich Plasma therapy can potentially delay the need for joint surgery.
http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/health&id=6915184
PRP is getting a lot of attention in the media lately…here is a link from Good Morning America. This treatment speaks to the concept that the body has a remarkable ability to heal itself. Through innovative technology, we are revolutionizing how we address treatment of tendon and cartilage injuries.
http://abcnews.go.com/Health/PainNews/Story?id=6895441&page=1
Following the mention of Hines Ward receiving a PRP injection to allow him to perform in the super bowl, there has been an increased interest in understanding this treatment. Recently I was interviewed by New York Times reporter Alan Schwarz and extensively contributed to the article which will be published in tomorrow morning’s New York Times in section A1.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/17/sports/17blood.html?_r=1
The article raises awareness that PRP is a cost effective and safe means of accelerating healing naturally without surgery. However I feel that PRP treatment represents only the beginning in a promising field known as “orthobiologics.” I will be at the 4th annual Stem Cell Summit In New York City Feburary 17, 2008. The leading biologic and stem cell companies, physicians, and scientists will converge to share our latest work. I will post an update on the presentations and will soon give a grand rounds on stem cell & biologic progress.
I’m thrilled that (PRP) Platelet Rich Plasma Therapy is beginning to capture the public and medical community’s attention. I hope to continue to train & educate physicians to expand the application of this innovative treatment in tendon and cartilage injuries. I hope to publish data from a PRP study on knee osteoarthritis this year.
Dr Steven Sampson
www.orthohealing.com
Following the well publicized NEJM article suggesting the ineffective role of arthroscoopy in arthritis, many are looking for alternative treatments that are cost effective with little risk. This article from the LA Times highlights some options including an exercise program, physical therapy modalities, and weight loss. While I agree that physical therapy is beneficial, as is maintaining a
n active lifestyle; often we need to address the internal biochemical environment of the joint. This may be achieved with Platelet Rich Plasma Therapy. Our knee arthritis clinical trials continue to show promising results in most cases. I have the 3 mo data in & I am collecting 6 mo data in a few weeks from now. These results will be published.
http://www.latimes.com/features/health/la-he-knees22-2008sep22,0,42582.story
Despite the predominance of knee arthritis in the US, there are few good options for patients hoping to relieve pain & improve function. Physical therapy can help to increase muscle tone to the quadriceps muscles to reduce excessive workload on the joint. Also inflexible muscles can be stretched to restore the normal kinetic chain to reduce pain & prevent further aggravation of symptoms. Orthotics & braces may decrease the mechanical forces that are adding stress on the joint. However these treatments will not influence the underlying inner cartilage defects and biochemical environment.
Knee arthroscopies are quite popular and certainly have a role in particular cases including severe meniscus and ACL tears. However in a recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine, there was no demonstrable benefit of knee arthroscopies for moderate to severe knee arthritis compared to physcial therapy and medications. 92 surgical patients and 86 controls (Physical therapy & medications) were compared over 2 years.
http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/short/359/11/1097
The article was reviewed recently in the LA Times.
http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-sci-knee11-2008sep11,0,1198164.story
This article should raise awareness that we need to develop innovative approaches to maximize healing in an increasingly active population. Over 27 million Americans have osteoarthritis.
We are performing Platelet Rich Plasma Injection Grafts in hip and knee arthritis with encouraging results. The field of orthobiologics is rapidly growing and promises to deliver new approaches to treating tendon and cartilage disorders. In my practice we are treating meniscal tears immediately to accelerate healing. Many patients do not need an arthrocsopy after 2 months of the PRP graft and physical therapy. By potentially avoiding surgical meniscal repairs, we hope to reduce the incidence of subsequent arthritis. We are conducting studies to further refine the treatment to achieve a maximal result.
We are beginning clinical trials of Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) injections in patients suffering with knee arthritis. There is an increasing “boomer” population with earlier knee arthritis as a result from prior trauma including meniscal tears & arthroscopies with scarring and cartilage loss etc. This phenomenon is termed “chondropenia.” We are searching for non-invasive alternatives to knee replacements in these active individuals.
Patients will receive a series of injections under ultrasound guidance to insure proper placement. X-rays and MRI’s, are taken into account & cartilage growth will be measured on serial ultrasound evaluations. Multiple pain score measures will be recorded as well. We plan on publishing this data so that the medical community can learn more about the promising role of PRP injections in cartilage disorders.
