• After the Covid pandemic, we have resumed stem cell treatments. Appropriate sterility and great care in sanitisation is undertaken as usual. If you are unwell with a cough cold or respiratory symptoms it is best to postpone your procedure.

Repairing meniscal wounds

150 150 NZ Stem Cell Treatment Centre

Int J Exp Pathol. 2005 Apr;86(2):117-23.
Enhancement of the repair of meniscal wounds in the red-white zone (middle third) by the injection of bone marrow cells in canine animal model.

Abdel-Hamid M, Hussein MR, Ahmad AF, Elgezawi EM.
Department of Orthopedics, Faculty of Medicine, Assuit University Hospitals, Assuit, Egypt.

Abstract
Bone marrow stem cells (BMSCs) can differentiate into several cells that participate in the healing of meniscal wounds. To test this hypothesis, we examined the effects of injected BMSCs on the healing of meniscal wounds. Autologous BMSCs from eight adult dogs were injected into meniscal wounds (knee joints). After 12 weeks, the healing process was clinically and immunomorphologically evaluated using: (i) histochemical stains (haematoxylin and eosin, Masson trichrome and periodic acid-Schiff) and (ii) immunoperoxidase staining methods (CD3, CD79a, CD68, CD31 and alpha smooth-muscle actin for T, B lymphocytes, macrophages, endothelial cells and smooth-muscle lineage). Complete (six vs. three), partial (one vs. one) and no healing (one vs. four animals) of the meniscal wounds were observed in the injected and noninjected menisci. As compared with the noninjected menisci, examination of the tissues from the injected ones revealed: (i) marked angiogenesis (microvessel density: 3.22 +/- 0.66 vs. 6.50 +/- 2.10); (ii) chondrogenesis; (iii) prominent immune cell infiltrate (4.07 +/- 0.78 vs. 9.56 +/- 1.69, 8.33 +/- 0.77 vs. 3.67 +/- 1.00 and 4.38 +/- 0.62 vs. 11.1 +/- 1.43 for the total numbers of immune cells, lymphocytes and macrophages, respectively); and (iv) proliferation of the fibroblasts with marked deposition of collagen fibres (2.0 +/- 0.84 vs. 2.66 +/- 0.48). These values were statistically significantly higher for the injected menisci as compared with the noninjected ones (P >/= 0.05). Autologous BMSCs can improve meniscal wound healing. Whether this improvement occurs through BMSC differentiation into cells operational in the repair process, the release of certain mediator or other unknown mechanisms mandates further investigations.

PMID: 15810983 [PubMed – indexed for MEDLINE]