Stem Cell Glue for Broken Bones, Banged up Knees
Updated: Thursday, 17 Dec 2009, 9:55 PM CST
Published : Thursday, 17 Dec 2009, 8:29 PM CST
MELISSA WILSON
Health Reporter
Thomas Moore, Sky News
HOUSTON - A man almost lost his foot after a terrible accident, but a huge break-through in medicine saved his smashed up leg. For the first time in Britain, doctors used his own stem cells to heal the bones.
Andrew Kent was on quite an adventure while mountain climbing with his son, when a boulder smashed his leg. It broke in 5-places.
Mountain rescue got him to the hospital, but his leg was splintered so badly, traditional treatments just wouldn't work. His wound got seriously infected, and surgeons were running out of options. Doctors feared they were going to have to amputate Kent's Foot.
"Receiving that news is pretty devastating. You think, I don't want to lose this. It would be horrendous!", says Kent.
Then, his surgeons attempted cutting edge technology.
They took stem cells from Kent's bone marrow in his hip and mixed them with a new collagen gel called "Cartifill".
Then, they widened the fractures and smeared the paste into the gaps.
Finally, a metal frame helped squeeze the bones together.
Now, Andrew's X-Ray show that all the small fractures have completely healed.
"A fracture takes about 3-months to heal. If you do this technique... you decrease it by 50%", says Orthopedic Surgeon Anan Shetty.
That would take it from 3-months... to 6-weeks healing time!
"I'm very pleased to move my toes and I can see them and they're looking good. I'm very pleased with the result", says Kent.
The combination of patient stem cells and collagen gel is also being used to repair torn cartilage in the knee.
Researchers think this process may transform orthopedic surgery. That's because the surgical technique unleashes the body's technique to heal itself. It's such a cost-effective treatment for painful joints and broken bones... researchers expect it to be widely used across the world.
Updated: Thursday, 17 Dec 2009, 9:55 PM CST
Published : Thursday, 17 Dec 2009, 8:29 PM CST
MELISSA WILSON
Health Reporter
Thomas Moore, Sky News
HOUSTON - A man almost lost his foot after a terrible accident, but a huge break-through in medicine saved his smashed up leg. For the first time in Britain, doctors used his own stem cells to heal the bones.
Andrew Kent was on quite an adventure while mountain climbing with his son, when a boulder smashed his leg. It broke in 5-places.
Mountain rescue got him to the hospital, but his leg was splintered so badly, traditional treatments just wouldn't work. His wound got seriously infected, and surgeons were running out of options. Doctors feared they were going to have to amputate Kent's Foot.
"Receiving that news is pretty devastating. You think, I don't want to lose this. It would be horrendous!", says Kent.
Then, his surgeons attempted cutting edge technology.
They took stem cells from Kent's bone marrow in his hip and mixed them with a new collagen gel called "Cartifill".
Then, they widened the fractures and smeared the paste into the gaps.
Finally, a metal frame helped squeeze the bones together.
Now, Andrew's X-Ray show that all the small fractures have completely healed.
"A fracture takes about 3-months to heal. If you do this technique... you decrease it by 50%", says Orthopedic Surgeon Anan Shetty.
That would take it from 3-months... to 6-weeks healing time!
"I'm very pleased to move my toes and I can see them and they're looking good. I'm very pleased with the result", says Kent.
The combination of patient stem cells and collagen gel is also being used to repair torn cartilage in the knee.
Researchers think this process may transform orthopedic surgery. That's because the surgical technique unleashes the body's technique to heal itself. It's such a cost-effective treatment for painful joints and broken bones... researchers expect it to be widely used across the world.