Promising results in trials of joint pain treatment

Two trials have begun in Melbourne involving stem cell therapy and regrown knee cartilage.

One study involved 30 osteoarthritis patients and the other covered 40 patients with isolated cartilage lesions.

The tests are looking at whether stem cells could halt normal joint deterioration and eventual arthritis.

The full results are yet to be published, but interim results look promising.

Two-thirds of patients have less pain and better movement.

One man even appears to have regrown cartilage?.

Dr Peter Larkins told Neil Mitchell there are over 200 types of stem cells that occur naturally in the body.

‘The promise of stem cell therapy for paraplegia, for spinal cord disease, is sensational,’ Dr Larkins said.

But he said we need to remain circumspect about these results.

‘Two-thirds of people got 50% better,’ he said.

‘It sounds good, but there’s a lot of other things that can do that.

‘Some people do (regrow cartilage) naturally.’

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