Regenerative Medicine
What is Regenerative Medicine?
Regenerative medicine involves the formation of living, functional tissue to repair or replace damaged tissue. The process may involve the stimulation of previously irreparable tissue or the growing new tissue in a laboratory that is then implanted into the body.
The different options of regenerative medicine include:
- Platelet rich plasma therapy
- Stem cell therapy
- Prolotherapy
What are the differences between platelet rich plasma therapy and stem cell therapy?
Platelets play a critical role in stopping the loss of blood in case of an injury by the formation of a blood clot. They also release growth factors that help in repair of damaged tissue by bringing in stem cells for tissue regeneration and the formation of new blood vessels. These healing properties of platelets are used in platelet-rich plasma therapy to provide a stimulus to the body’s natural healing mechanism and to speed up the healing process. The platelet rich plasma is derived from the patient’s own blood which is centrifuged to increase the concentration of platelets in the plasma.
Stem cell therapy is a different type of procedure. The stem cells may be obtained from sources such as bone marrow, umbilical cord blood, adipose tissue or allografts from a donor. Stem cells are capable of not only regenerating loss tissue, but help in determining the course of repair. To put it in gardening terms, while PRP is the fertilizer that nourishes the plant, stem cells are the seeds that contain the blue print determining how the plant should grow.