There was exciting news out of the medical world earlier this week. Scientists have developed a way for stem cells to grow new cartilage on a scaffold shaped like the ball of a hip joint. What does that mean exactly? It means new research shows that it may be possible to avoid or delay hip replacements by repairing a damaged hip joint. To do this, they would create new cartilage using a patient’s adipose stem cells derived from liposuction. Although this study is in the early stages, it is a remarkable breakthrough in orthopedic and osteoarthritis research.
Project lead, Dr. Farshid Guilak, is a professor of orthopedic surgery at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and an Arthritis Foundation grant recipient. Dr. Guilak received 2012-2013 Innovative Research Grant as well as one of the two 2014 Arthritis Foundation Investigator Awards, which helped to fund this very study.
This discovery may one day provide an alternative to hip replacement surgery, which is welcome news to all patients withosteoarthritis当严重的关节疼痛和损伤持续干扰日常活动时，他们经常需要进行髋关节置换手术。
In some ways the new cartilage may be better than the original. Since inflammation remains a concern even after replacement, the scientists discovered a way to engineer the new cartilage to release anti-inflammatory proteins. These proteins would then serve to reduce the inflammation protecting the new cartilage.
关节炎基金会高级副总裁，科学战略的Guy S. Eakin说:“这项研究迄今为止的结果对关节炎社区来说是非常令人兴奋的，我们可以看到革命性的结果。关节炎基金会为Farshid Guilak博士和他的团队感到骄傲，我们也很荣幸我们能发挥作用。这是真正的下一代关节置换治疗方法。”
According to the CDC, 332,000 hip replacements are made in the US every year. A hip made of living tissue may last longer or, at the very least, delay traditional hip replacements.
Some customized implants are currently being tested in laboratory animals. If all goes well, Dr. Guilak and his team could be ready for safety testing in humans in three to five years.
The Arthritis Foundation could not be prouder to be a part of this exciting – and potentially revolutionary – study. The excitement in the medical industry surrounding this study is great news for the arthritis community and those living with osteoarthritis. We hope to provide an update on this important research in early 2017.
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Photo credit: Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis
It is were nice the improvement in research.Thow it is a pitty it still have to take so long for implementing.