Stem cell injections?

Mom, at your son's age, I would lean toward the more conservative treatment. If it is unsuccessful, there will always be time for surgery. That's what we did with my son's initial UCL tear ( per Dr James Andrews' recommendation). There was a time when frustration made me and my son question why didn't we just have TJ as a 15 or 16 year old. Well, he was able to pitch for 3 years before requiring surgery. It is frustrating that he missed his freshman season, but looking at it now, the conservative approach allowed him to compete and get a scholarship from his dream school. Having TJ now will allow him  2 full years to rehab and perform before he is graft eligible again. 

It is often easier to see how God is in control when we are able to look back at a particular situation. I wish the best of luck to your son and your family. Injuries are difficult to predict and usually impossible to control. 

March 2015, son injured rotator cuff/torn labrum. Surgery was recommended by team physicians...which may have ended his career, at the least, recovery would have taken most of this last season (2016)...Stem cell therapy is very new, & there are no guarantees. However, son saw it as a viable alternative. (anything to avoid surgery!) Did lots of research & several consults...procedures were performed by Dr. James Andrews. He was cleared & started light throwing Sept 2015. 

I don't understand much about it, but in sons' case, it has allowed him to continue in pro ball. Velocity has returned, arm feels better than before injury...Just finished AA season.

Let's clarify some things. Maybe   I have enough experience with this to be dangerous.  I am not a doctor.

Platelets (from PRP) are NOT stem cells.  If you have low platelets, you will have small 'bruises' on your body that are slow to heal.  Platelets are not the magical things you read about in the news, like stem cells.

The way I read it, in PRP, they take blood from you, and strip out the platelets (not the stem cells), then inject the concentrated platelets back into you into the effected area.

Honestly, I don't think platelets can repair a 'torn' ligament.  Platelets may well help if it's swollen, inflamed, or painful.

Stem cell therapy, using immature stem cells from your bone marrow for example, might theoretically repair a torn ligament by potentially growing new tissue.   If your 'stem cell therapy' is using adult (or fully grown) stem cells from your blood, I don't see how it can help at all.  I don't think these can grow new tissue.

I would be very skeptical of any claims of any therapy can 'repair' a 'torn' ligament.  (I know that claims are made)

You need to know if the ligament is torn, and what percent is torn.  This is not as easy as it sounds.  You need someone at Andrews clinic or similar that has looked at thousands of these MRIs.  If you have a very small tear, you may be able to build up the surrounding muscles via therapies, and carry on.  If the tear is too great, no amount of 'therapy' is going to fix it (immature stem cells might theoretically work though).

Sultan, you are correct in your comments.  PRP is "plasma rich protein".  It has all the healing factors that can aid or speed up recovery, but it does not grow "new tissue".  The stem cells are undifferentiated cells that have yet been told "what" to become.  These stem cells can grow into any type of tissue or organ, depending on use or manipulation.  So the PRP aids the body's ability to heal and injured area, not to obtain "new" tissue.  They are two completely separate modalities all together.  I think MOMOF#24 was referring to an either / or situation, at least that is how I read the OP.

SultanofSwat posted:

...

The way I read it, in PRP, they take blood from you, and strip out the platelets (not the stem cells), then inject the concentrated platelets back into you into the effected area....

Stem cell therapy, using immature stem cells from your bone marrow for example, might theoretically repair a torn ligament by potentially growing new tissue.   If your 'stem cell therapy' is using adult (or fully grown) stem cells from your blood, I don't see how it can help at all.  I don't think these can grow new tissue.

I would be very skeptical of any claims of any therapy can 'repair' a 'torn' ligament.  (I know that claims are made)...

Sultan, you are correct. PRP is platelet, blood cells. And they perform as you described.

2. Yes, with stem cell therapy, cells are removed from bone marrow, treated someway, then reinjected into the specific site of injury to be repaired. There are 2-3 pro ball players that have had positive results. There was a question as to legitimacy of Colon's procedure. I think it was done in the Dominican Republic.

My son saw Dr Andrews for this procedure, understanding no guarantee. That was June 2015. He started light throwing 3 1/2 mo later.  For Pres, It has worked. Back to mid 90's, no pain or discomfort what so ever. That's all I know. 

I believe there are several Universities conducting studies, and Nat'l Inst of Health has alot of info. Research Universities include Johns Hopkins, Univ of Miami, Univ of Colorado, that I recall.  In USA, the procedure has to be completed within 24-48 hrs., as I recall. Much stricter than in Europe or Caribbean...But this seems to be very promising across many athletic fields. Lots of football players have undergone this type of therapy. 

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Here is some interesting info.  This is for ACL, but I'm sure it is just a matter of time before it makes its way to other ligaments, like the UCL.

http://www.regenexx.com/regene...r-cruciate-ligament/