Learn how biocellular injection treatments help your body heal itself.
Are you living with chronic pain that keeps you from being as mobile as you wish, causes you to miss work, and reduces your quality of life? You’re not alone. More than 1 out of 5 adults in the U.S. experiences chronic pain.1 “Pain management techniques have gone through major advances in the last decade with no major improvement in the quality of life in affected populations,” states the National Institutes of Health. “But recently there has been growing interest in the utilization of stem cells for pain management.”2
“Chronic pain can interfere with your daily activities, such as working, having a social life and taking care of yourself or others. It can lead to depression, anxiety and trouble sleeping, which can make your pain worse. This response creates a cycle that’s difficult to break.“
– Cleveland Clinic
NW Regen specializes in minimally invasive therapies that promote regeneration of cells and natural healing, including stem cell therapies that treat the root causes of chronic pain. In this article, we will:
- Define what stem cell therapy is
- Explain how stem cell therapy works
- Explore what type of chronic pain it’s most effective for, and
- Discuss what results are possible with stem cell therapy.
At NW Regen, any stem cell therapy used is most transformative as part of a holistic treatment plan, where we partner with you, foster a conducive space for healing, and provide continual support throughout your recovery process.
By synergizing with additional therapies, such as PRP injections or prolotherapy, it ensures a comprehensive healing environment. This collaborative approach is designed to amplify your body’s response, tackling the healing process from multiple angles and optimizing the conditions for regeneration. Our goal is not to merely address symptoms or provide a temporary reprieve, but to engage the body in a profound, enduring healing process.
We also design personalized nutritional, exercise, and lifestyle plans specifically for your needs, which add to you improving your mental health and well-being. Talk with our specialists about how we can help.
What is stem cell therapy?
Stem cell therapy uses your body’s own stem cells to “regenerate” tissues that have deteriorated from age or injury and are causing pain in your body. For many, this is a preferred method of treatment rather than simply masking the issue of what is causing your chronic pain with oral non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) or by covering it up with injections of anti-inflammatory pain medications or corticosteroids.
“Stem Cell therapy for chronic pain works with your body to address and repair the underlying problem for long-term results.“
– Dr. Ryan Wood
By injecting the area or your body that is causing your pain with your own stem cells, your body’s tissues can “self-repair” and regenerate, strengthening the body’s damaged tendons, ligaments, and joints and alleviating the cause of your chronic pain.
How does stem cell therapy work?
Let’s start with a little “Stem Cell 101” and then explore how the therapy works. Human stem cells are known as the building blocks from which all other cells are made. During our early embryonic development, our stem cells transform into whichever types of cells are needed to form human life – whether it’s brain cells, skin cells, or organ cells – and then they multiply indefinitely as that type of cell. Unlike muscle cells, blood cells, or nerve cells—which do not normally replicate— stem cells may replicate many times and have unique abilities to self-renew and to recreate functional tissues.3
As adults, we still have stem cells in our blood, bone marrow, and adipose fat. These adult stem cells have the power to regenerate, rebuild, and repair damaged tissues, while simultaneously decreasing inflammation.
When you are injured, your adult stem cells come to your rescue – but most adults don’t have the quantity or concentration needed to accelerate repair and recovery from chronic pain situations. This is where stem cell therapy helps by concentrating your stem cells.
“Because our therapies utilize our patient’s own stem cells, there is minimal risk of rejection or adverse reactions. The body recognizes these cells and uses them to heal itself from within. The naturopathic approach afforded by this therapy marks it as a truly regenerative — and transformative — solution.“
– Dr. Ryan Wood
At NW Regen, we utilize ultrasound image guidance to ensure we inject the concentrated mixture in the precise areas needed to help regenerate degenerated tissue and mitigate the root cause of your pain. Our powerful injection therapies use an adipose (fatty) tissue graft from your body rich in regenerative cells, including adipose-derived stem cells (ASCs).
Adipose tissue is fat tissue that contains multiple types of healthy cells. It’s an optimal biocellular material because it offers cellular, biological, and structural support for injection therapies, creates tissue scaffolding to support repair, is simple to harvest, and contains about 1,000 times as many stem cells as bone marrow.
What type of chronic pain can stem cell therapy help?
Stem cell therapy can help to relieve chronic pain that stems from a host of musculoskeletal and orthopedic issues. issues, including:
- Chronic joint pain and instability
- Chronic sprains, strains and other sports related injuries
- Degenerative disc diseases
- Rheumatoid arthritis
- Connective tissue injuries
- Neuropathy, or nerve damage
- Ligament, muscle and tendon damage including meniscal tears, rotator cuff tears, calcific tendinosis, frozen shoulder, chronic tendinitis, such as tennis/golfers’ elbow, plantar fasciitis and chronic ankle instability
What results are possible with stem cell therapy?
While stem cell therapy offers the potential for curative, regenerative relief from persistent pain, it also provides long-lasting relief compared to temporarily masking chronic pain with medications alone. Stem cell therapy is a cornerstone of regenerative medicine, rooted in the body’s innate ability to repair itself. But please note that this innovative treatment isn’t an instant fix; it’s a facilitator for your body’s organic restoration process.
Just as a wound requires the intricate work of producing collagen and other essential elements to reconstruct tissue and reunite the skin’s edges, stem cell therapy initiates a complex healing process within your body. It’s a process that demands patience. Because of this intricate internal work, the timeline for visible and tangible improvement can extend over weeks or even months, mirroring the body’s deliberate pace of self-repair.
At NW Regen, we understand the nuances of pain and the longing for relief and restoration, which is why our expert team is dedicated to leveraging the power of regenerative medicine to its fullest. We’re committed to helping you craft a comprehensive health plan so you can thrive as your best self.
Reach out to us today to explore more about stem cell therapy, delve into how it can become a pivotal part of your journey to wellness, and set the stage for a life with more movement, less pain, and deeper fulfillment.
- https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33990113/ ↩︎
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8445610/ ↩︎
- https://stemcells.nih.gov/info/basics/stc-basics/ ↩︎
Dr. Ryan Wood is a licensed Naturopathic and Chiropractic physician focusing on interventional orthopedic and orthobiologic medicine and injection therapies as well as general musculoskeletal and non-surgical orthopedic medicine.
With almost two decades of orthopedic practice across multiple disciplines, he has the necessary experience to ensure proper diagnoses and management of complex cases.
