Stem cell treatment used by Chris Johnson, hundreds of NFL …

New JetChris Johnson had stem cells from his bone marrow reinjected into his knee to augment Januarysurgery for a torn meniscus. The hope is that it wouldboost healingand perhaps rebuild cartilage. (AP)

Hes 28. He has five 1,000-yard NFL rushing seasons to his name, one 2,000-yarder and a burning desire to prove hes the same speedster hes always been. So when Chris Johnson visited orthopedic surgeon James Andrews in January to fix his ailing left knee, he liked the sound of two intriguing words: Stem cells.

The veteran running back tore the meniscus in that knee in Week 3 of the 2013 seasonhis last with the Titans before being cutbut never missed a game. The injury to the knees natural shock absorber also caused other damage in the joint, and Andrews presented an option that might augment what surgery alone could do. The plan: Take stem cells, the bodys universal building blocks, and deliver them directly to the construction site.

When I tore my meniscus and played the season out, through the wear and tear, I lost a lot of cartilage, says Johnson, who was signed by the Jets to bring explosiveness to their offense. When you put the stem cells in, it might be able to help rebuild that cartilage in your knee. Hopefully, it makes your knee better for even more years.

On the day of his surgery at the Andrews Institute in Gulf Breeze, Fla., Johnson had a small amount of his bone marrow60 milliliters, or the volume of a shot glasssiphoned out of the iliac crest of his pelvis with a long needle pushed through a tiny incision in his skin. Less than an hour later, at the end of the arthroscopic procedure to repair his meniscus, a concentrate of thousands of stem cells from the bone marrow was injected directly into Johnsons knee joint.

Instead of the usual four-to-six-week recovery time from the scope, Johnson stayed off the practice field for the rest of the offseason, giving the stem-cell treatment maximum time to work. At the least, stem cells are a powerful anti-inflammatory. But the hope is they may also play a role in boosting the healing of injured tissues, including stubborn ones like the meniscus, which lacks a robust blood supply, or cartilage, which has long been irreplaceable.

Stem cells are far from mainstreamNFL teams will often not pick up the bill, and the overseas market for treatments not approved in the U.S. makes the whole field seem somewhat taboo.

Johnson is one of hundredsyes, hundredsof NFL players who have invested in the promise of stem cells in the past few years. Peyton Manning reportedly tried a stem-cell treatment in Europe in 2011, his final year with the Colts, to fast-track his recovery from neck surgery. Giants cornerback Prince Amukamara had a slow-healing broken metatarsal treated with stem cells by a foot specialist in North Carolina after his teams Super Bowl XLVI run. One NFL linebacker paid $6,000 a pop for a 1-milliliter vial of donated placenta tissue containing stem cells to be injected into each of his beat-up knees this offseasonbut asked for his name not to be used in this story because he didnt tell his teams medical staff.

Such treatment is more common than you might realize among NFL players (hundreds of players across 32 teams averages to at least six players per team), but its also far from mainstream. Stem cells are still somewhat in the shadowsevidence of their usefulness in treating athletes injuries is so far largely anecdotal, NFL teams often will not pick up the bill for players, and the overseas market for treatments not approved in the U.S. makes the whole field seem somewhat taboo.

Theres a push to change that, though, and Andrews is an important figure at the forefront. His group is currently building a laboratory at its Florida facility specifically dedicated to biologicsthe term refers to substances that are produced in living systems such as humans, animals and microorganisms, rather than manufactured like drugsto be able to offer their star-studded clientele more of these treatments more effectively in the U.S. The agenda includes a research study with retired NFL players on how well stem cells work in treating arthritis of the knee; a trial of a Malaysian technique for regenerating cartilage by using stem cells from the blood after microfracture surgery; and exploring whether torn ACL tissue can be repurposed to help the new ligament graft heal more quickly.

More:
Stem cell treatment used by Chris Johnson, hundreds of NFL ...

Regenerative Medicine Solutions – Home – Stem Cell …

Regenerative Medicine Solutions (RMS) is a leading global provider of Stem Cell Treatments, Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP), Natural Growth Factors and other innovative regenerative medical technologies,for the treatment of an array of debilitating medical conditions. Through our individualized, patient-centric approach, we are providing the highest quality of care and consistent positive outcomes. By applying todays best practices to the growing field of regenerative medicine RMS is changing lives.

RMS is results-driven, having positively improved the quality of life for hundreds of patients. At RMS, the safety of every patient is our top priority. All of the procedures performed at RMSs state-of-the-art clinics are in compliance with the highest standards of safety. The quality of care provided by our team of medical experts is unsurpassed in the industry.

RMS is sensitive to the distressing nature of our patients conditions, therefore our focus is to provide them with a superior level of personalized care and to make them comfortable throughout the entire treatment process. Supported by ground breaking developments in clinical science and stem cell therapy, RMS is welcoming the future of medicine through the application of our innovative regenerative technologies.

100%

of procedures are outpatient

100%

of procedures are minimally invasive

100+

years of combined physician experience

500+

Originally posted here:
Regenerative Medicine Solutions - Home - Stem Cell ...

Lung Institutes Medical Director Celebrates 55th Anniversary in Medical Practice

Tampa, FL (PRWEB) July 29, 2014

This month marks a milestone for the Lung Institutes Medical Director, Dr. Burton Feinerman, as he celebrates his 55th anniversary in the medical field. Practicing medicine for over half a century, Dr. Feinerman has distinguished himself as a world-renowned physician in the field of regenerative medicine with the development of innovative stem cell treatments for lung diseases like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Dr. Feinermans medical career has been punctuated by many firsts. In the 1950s and 1960s, Dr. Feinerman was the owner of Opa-Locka General Hospital, the only private hospital accepting African Americans in Miami, Florida. He also set up the first Pediatric Emergency Rooms in South Florida at Parkway Hospital and Miami General Hospital.

The Lung Institutes medical director was also involved with the first successful allogeneic (genetically dissimilar) bone marrow transplant performed on a 10-month-old child with severe combined/immunodeficiency, known as bubble baby. This patient, who was given a very poor prognosis of life expectancy, is now 36-years-old and a high school teacher. In 1998, Dr. Feinerman set up the first medical service website site, Webmedicalservices.com, to directly answer patient questions, which later became a public company.

It was during his time in Hawaii as the first physician to offer cosmetic dermatology and anti-aging medicine that Dr. Feinerman initially became interested in stem cells. Over subsequent years, he developed stem cell patents for a variety of disorders including Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), Parkinsons, Alzheimers, multiple sclerosis, autism, cerebral palsy, COPD, pulmonary fibrosis, diabetes types 1 and 2, end-stage kidney disease and brain damage in children and adults. He also developed patents for gene therapies to treat such conditions as Tay-Sachs, Sandhoff disease, Huntingtons disease and metachromatic leukodystrophy.

Dr. Feinermans stem cell quest continues at Regenerative Medicine Solutions and Lung Institute, with his current research aimed at conquering neurological and chronic lung diseases as well as diseases causing blindness such as age-related macular degeneration, retinitis pigmentosa, and stargardts disease.

I am humbled at the acknowledgement of my role as a catalyst for change in medicine, confessed Dr. Feinerman who was honored last year as Lifetime Achievement Award finalist for the Tampa Bay Business Journals Healthcare Heroes. When I reflect back on my medical career, I only see my patients.

About the Lung Institute At the Lung Institute, we are changing the lives of hundreds of people across the nation through the innovative technology of regenerative medicine. We are committed to providing patients a more effective way to address pulmonary conditions and improve quality of life. Our physicians, through their designated practices, have gained worldwide recognition for the successful application of revolutionary minimally invasive stem cell therapies. With over a century of combined medical experience, our doctors have established a patient experience designed with the highest concern for patient safety and quality of care. For more information, visit our website at LungInstitute.com, like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or call us today at (855) 469-5864.

See the rest here:
Lung Institutes Medical Director Celebrates 55th Anniversary in Medical Practice