Back and Neck Pain
Low back and neck pain are some of the more common reasons for a patient to visit a primary care or orthopedic physician. Some patients will live with back aches for years, while others may visit a physician quickly because of severe, acute pain, radiating symptoms, numbness or muscle weakness.
Common causes of pain include:
• Lumbar sprains or strains
• Herniated or bulging discs
• Sacroiliac Joint Dysfunction
• Piriformis Syndrome
• Spinal stenosis
• Degenerative Disc Disease
• Spondylosis (arthritis of the spine)
• CORE muscle weakness
Although there are many causes of neck and back pain, about 95% of patients can be managed conservatively with physical therapy, cortisone injections, massage, osteopathic or chiropractic manipulation, medications and time. When these treatments have failed to alleviate the pain, conventional treatment may turn to surgery as an end result to take away the pain. In many cases, however, surgery is not the best answer and sometimes may not even help a patient.
How can regenerative medicine help?
Early research has shown that treatment with non-surgical regenerative therapies such as bone marrow concentrate (stem cell) injections and prolotherapy have been helpful for treating a number of conditions for the spine. Regenerative medicine treatments activate your body’s own adult stem cells and blood platelets to stimulate healing and speed repair for bone, muscle, joint, soft tissue and nerve injuries.
We all have healing stem cells in our bodies. Primarily found in bone marrow and fatty tissue, these cells act as repairmen and can regenerate into the type of cell that is needed when injected into an injured area. For example, when these cells are placed in an injured environment, such as a degenerated disc of the back, they are more likely to turn into the cells that the body needs. In this case, the cells will recognize that the disc cells have started to break down and will help to regenerate them to give the discs more water content and volume. Also in the case of degenerative disc disease, stem cells produce anti-inflammatory proteins (cytokines) which help to reduce pain and improve disability related to the spine. Learn more here.
Call to schedule an appointment to discuss your treatment options with one of our physicians to determine if stem cell treatment is appropriate for you.