About Bone Regeneration Stem Cell Treatment
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What is bone regeneration?
This is a medical procedure that involves using a series of bone conduction and induction, with various cells in order to restore skeletal function.
Most bone injuries such as fractures heal without forming scar tissue. Bone is regenerated and the pre-existing properties are mostly restored. With time the newly formed bone is impossible to differentiate with the uninjured bone which is adjacent.
However, in some cases, the healing of fractures is impaired when the bone does not regenerate leading to fracture nonunion or delayed union. Moreover, some conditions treated in oral maxillofacial and orthopedic surgery require bone regeneration in large quantity. Examples include skeletal reconstruction of large bone defects which are caused by infection, trauma, skeletal abnormalities and tumor resection. In addition osteoporosis, atrophic nonunions and avascular necrosis also compromise the regenerative process.
Stages of bone regenerationThere are four stages which are involved in successfully regenerating bone and other tissues. They are abbreviated as PASS.
- P: This involves the primary closing of the wound. This aims at promoting uninterrupted or undisturbed healing.
- A: Angiogenesis provides the necessary supply of blood and undifferentiated mesenchymal stem cells.
- S: This involves creating and maintaining space for bone in-growth
- S: This aims at stabilizing the wound in order to induce blood clot formation and allow for healing.
What are the indications for bone regeneration?The building of bone around implants which are placed in tooth sockets after tooth extractions.
To preserve the sockets for future implantation of prosthetics or false teeth
To fill bone defects after tooth extraction or cystectomy
To repair bone defects after reopening a wound
Current treatmentPresently there are various methods used to repair and regenerate bone tissue. These include
- Autologous bone graft
- Allograft implantation
- Free fibula vascularized graft
- Use of growth factors
- Osteoprogenitor cells
- Osteoconductive scaffolds
- Distraction ontogenesis
Bone graftTh9is is a technique used for bone tissue reparation. Surgeons use existing gathered bone mass from a donor or another source and graft it to the section of bone being repaired. However, the amount of bone needed is very difficult to amass.
BiomimicryThis is a technique that researchers have developed which repairs bone structure using marine and coral sponges as frames for bone tissue regeneration. These materials are ideal because they easily integrate into the existing bone structure. In addition, they greatly resemble bones in terms of composition and porosity (all are constructed with calcium carbonate).
How can stem cells help?Stem cells are very crucial in bone regeneration. The current approach involves directly delivering osteogenic cells to the regeneration site. This is done by using bone marrow aspirate harvested from the iliac crest which also has growth factors. The procedure is minimally invasive and enhances bone repair. The quality of stem cells varies significantly. This depends on:
- The patient’s age
- Aspiration sites
- Techniques used
- Concentration of bone marrow
The procedureThe scaffold are prepared and crafted to fit the area to be repaired. The stem cells are also prepared. The procedure involves inserting the scaffold and stem cells into the damaged section. Over time, the bone tissue expands from the existing bone onto the scaffold. The stem cells are converted into bone cells.
Learn more about Bone Regeneration