Cell Therapy Teknon Applied Against Chronic Low Back Pain
It is a noninvasive technique that preserves spinal mobility Teknon created by leading researchers in Cell Therapy Clinical Trials
Researchers at the Tissue Regenerative Therapy Unit Teknon Medical Center have found suitable use of adult stem cells in the treatment of certain degenerative intervertebral disc causing chronic back pain. The study results were published this month in the influential U.S. journal “Transplantation” with over 25,000 citations annually.
Back pain is the second leading cause of sick leave and head of the annual loss of 700,000 working hours as reported by the Directorate General for Research and Innovation of the European Commission. It affects 67 million people in the European Union, of which 5 million are Spanish. It is estimated that 75% of the population suffers from back pain at some
moment of his life surpasses 90% before 3 months but in 5-10% become chronic.
One of the most common causes of chronic low back pain is intervertebral disc degeneration.
In most cases this process is asymptomatic, but when you have pain refractory to
resorted to various surgical procedures such as the suppression of the movement of the affected space. In Spain is about 1,000 spinal fixation or arthrodesis annually and about 40,000 in the U.S..
Faced with this alternative, the researchers designed a pilot study with 10 patients with chronic low back pain attributable to lumbar disc degeneration, which injected a certain dose of stem cells. The cells were obtained from the pelvic bone from the same patients and grown in the Institute of Molecular Biology and Genetics, joint center of the University of Valladolid and the Center for Scientific Research.
After three weeks of culturing the resulting cell product was inoculated percutaneously under fluoroscopic control and the affected vertebral disc. Both cellular and procedure for obtaining application was performed under light sedation and local anesthesia and did not require hospitalization.
Patients were followed and evaluated for one year, proving that showed a significant improvement in pain and disability in 9 of the 10 cases treated. The efficacy, compared with existing surgical solutions was similar or even higher, with the advantage that it is a non-invasive, simple and conservative preserving
biomechanics of the spine.
Currently the Spanish Agency for Medicines and Healthcare products regularly authorize the Teknon Medical Center researchers to keep practicing this cell therapy in selected cases and always under their control.
All subsequent clinical trials and compassionate use treatments carried out by the Unit has been performed under the approval and supervision of the Ethics and Clinical Research Teknon under the current legislation of both the Department of Health and the Ministry of Health, Politics Social and Equality.
The clinical trial was developed under agreement between the Regenerative Tissue Therapy Unit Teknon Medical Center and the Instituto de Salud Carlos III, an agency of the Ministry of Science and Innovation Plan was part of the Advanced Therapies that led the Ministry of Health in 2007 and is the result of the research network that enables the Red Tercel Instituto Carlos III of that item, and a sample of the benefits of scientific collaboration between public and private organizations and researchers involved Teknon Medical Center, the IBGM Valladolid and Egarsat (mutual accidents and occupational diseases of the social security).
The Regenerative Tissue Therapy Unit Teknon Medical Center co-directed by Dr. Lluís Soler Orozco Delclos and Robert Rich is a pioneer in research and treatment with adult stem cells. Collaborate with public and private institutions, as well as practitioners of various medical specialties to determine evidence of benefit of cell therapy.
Seven clinical trials and more than 130 patients treated with bone regeneration objectives of building defects, regeneration of articular cartilage in osteoarthritis and intervertebral disc regeneration, therapeutic potential and support this open a wide spectrum of future applications.