Adipose tissue cells relieve the symptoms of osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis – a deteriorating quality of life and accompanied by severe pain syndrome – affects about 14% of people over the age of 25 and about a third of people over the age of 65.

A group of researchers from several scientific institutions of the Czech Republic and several neighboring countries conducted a study that demonstrated the effectiveness of osteoarthritis treatment by transplanting cells isolated from patients' own adipose tissue.
According to the first author of the article Autologous adipose tissue-derived stromal vascular fraction cells application in patients with osteoarthritis, published in the journal Cell Transplantation, Dr. Jaroslav Michalek, cells isolated from adipose tissue, known as the stromal vascular fraction, have great potential in the treatment of a wide range of diseases, including heart attack myocardial infarction, stroke, Crohn's disease, multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, as well as for use in plastic surgery for breast enlargement or reconstruction. He also notes that in reality, the source of these cells is not the adipose tissue itself, but fragments of connective tissue that are part of the lipoaspirate – a fatty substance obtained during the liposuction procedure.

The study involved 1,114 patients aged 19-94 years (median age – 62 years), 52.8% of them men. Each participant was given a single dose of autologous cells of the stromal-vascular fraction. In most cases, experimental therapy was applied to the knee or hip joint, while some patients were injected into several joints at the same time.

After that, the patients' condition was monitored for a period of 12-54 months (median – 17.2 months). To determine the effectiveness of therapy, parameters such as the severity of pain syndrome, the use of nonsteroidal analgesics, lameness, limited mobility and stiffness of the joints were used. All parameters were evaluated at the beginning of the study, as well as 3, 6 and 12 months after the introduction of cells.

None of the participants had serious side effects, systemic infections or the development of malignant tumors associated with stem cell therapy. During the follow-up period, the vast majority of patients experienced a gradual improvement in the symptoms of osteoarthritis.

The results of the analysis of the collected data showed that 12 months after the therapy, 63% of the participants had an improvement of at least 75% in terms of the total score of symptom assessments, and 91% of the participants had at least 50%. At the same time, obesity and severe forms of osteoarthritis were associated with a slower process of improvement.

It is very indicative of the fact that almost all the study participants, who initially very often resorted to painkillers, significantly reduced their use after therapy.

The authors also note a number of advantages of using stromal-vascular fraction cells for the treatment of osteoarthritis before using mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) of the bone marrow:

• adipose tissue is easily isolated by liposuction;
• a huge number of cells containing 500-2500 times more mesenchymal stem cells than the population of cells isolated from the bone marrow are isolated from the lipoaspirate;
• the number of mesenchymal stem cells in the bone marrow decreases rapidly with aging, while their content in adipose tissue is relatively stable throughout life;
• adipose tissue contains unique cells capable of suppressing inflammatory reactions;
• the cell population isolated from adipose tissue does not need to be cultured in the laboratory;
• cells of the stromal-vascular fraction are suitable for use immediately after isolation from adipose tissue;
• therapy with cells of the stromal-vascular fraction does not cause serious side effects.

Therapy with stromal vascular fraction cells also has advantages over other approaches to the treatment of osteoarthritis. For example, a fairly common surgical operation to completely replace the affected joint in some cases may not be applicable due to the advanced age or general health of the patient. In addition, it is associated with serious side effects, such as myocardial infarction, stroke, systemic infections and death.

However, despite all the attractiveness of the considered method of treatment, the researchers note that to date there are no guarantees that it is able to provide a complete cure of patients from degenerative osteoarthritis. To get answers to questions about the duration of the therapeutic effect and the long-term safety of therapy, long-term monitoring of patients who have undergone it is necessary.

Evgenia Ryabtseva, portal "Eternal Youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru/17.04.2015