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Monday, February 18, 2008

Treatment test for broken bones

Photo by http://news.bbc.co.uk
Scientists are hoping to develop the first treatment for broken bones using a patient's own stem cells.

The procedure, which would also be used to repair damaged cartilage, is being tested at Edinburgh University.

It is hoped the revolutionary technique could be used for people whose bones have either been shattered in accidents or removed because of cancer.

Although bones often mend themselves, the aim is to speed up the process and help with more serious fractures.

The stem cells are extracted from the patient's own body and under the right conditions they turn into tiny fragments of bone tissue.

The tissue is then placed in a supportive scaffold in the patient's body, where they replace the missing or damaged area.

Dr Brendon Noble, from the University of Edinburgh's MRC Centre for Regenerative Medicine, said: "We hope that this will kick start the body's natural healing processes, enabling cells to grow and carry out repair to the damaged area.

"Half of us have some form of orthopaedic surgery at some point in our lives.

"Although the specific group of patients who would receive the most benefit from such therapy have yet to be determined, we envisage a number of scenarios where this therapy could be used for cartilage injuries or severe fractures."

Scientists have been given almost £1.5m to develop the treatment.

Clinical trials are expected within two years.

Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/edinburgh_and_east/7250489.stm

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Friday, February 15, 2008

Stem cell fracture treatment showing results

Photo by $fractured hand xray$ ncgraphics
Australian doctors say they have had good results using adult stem cells to repair bone fractures.

The trial at Royal Melbourne Hospital involved 10 patients with leg fractures which would not heal.

Results released today show all patients treated with adult stem cells have had new bone growth, while seven patients had their fractures completely healed within six months.

Tags: health, doctors-and-medical-professionals, medical-procedures, science-and-technology , stem-cells, australia, vic, melbourne-3000

Source: http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/02/13/2161760.htm

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Thursday, February 14, 2008

Broken bones start to fix themselves almost immediately

The playground at your local park probably has a conveniently spongy surface perfect for cushioning young bones upon the inevitable tumble from the jungle gym. But back in the days of monkey bars and concrete slabs, playgrounds were notorious hotbeds of bone fractures. One consolation of such a painful mishap was a cool cast signed by everyone in your class. Aside from that, a good thing about broken bones is that they start to fix themselves almost immediately. How do they do it?

Although they may appear dry and lifeless, bones are just as alive as the tissue that surrounds them. Inside the hard outer part of a bone is a spongy center filled with blood vessels and special cells that constantly tear down and rebuild the bone from the inside out. Bone cells called osteoclasts are like a demolition crew, breaking down old bone material while cells called osteoblasts are like a construction crew, building up new bone material as the old stuff is demolished.

So how do these cells help broken bones heal? When a bone breaks, a blood clot forms and bone demolition cells near the site of the break immediately begin clearing away the rubble. Meanwhile, the bone creates a sort of patch called a bone callus to replace the blood clot and hold the broken bone together. At the same time, bone construction cells near the break start to produce new bone material to repair the damage. Depending on the bone and the severity of the fracture, after several weeks its hardworking cells can repair a broken bone as good as new.

Source: http://amos.indiana.edu/library/scripts/brokenbones.html

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Tuesday, February 5, 2008

New treatment lets patients use broken bones immediately

Jewelry designer Eve Alfille, 72, sought medical attention for a wrist fracture just 10 days before she was to show a new collection of work at her gallery in Evanston.

She thought her show would be ruined because she would be unable to finish hand-crafting her jewelry with a clunky cast on her wrist.

She went to one doctor who told her he wouldn’t perform surgery – the wrist would just have to heal on its own. Without the surgery she faced permanent displacement, and might not have been able to twist her wrist ever again, she said.

“They weren’t really interested in my needs,” Alfille said. “I am a jewelry designer and there is a certain use of my hand that I just need – I wouldn’t be able to work.”

She was devastated and sought a second opinion. That’s when Dr. Mark Cohen, an orthopedic surgeon at Rush University Medical Center who specializes in hand, wrist and elbow surgery, told her that using the latest technology he could fix her wrist and have her back to work in just a few days.

“It was remarkable,” Alfille said. “There was no pain, before or after, and I was able to do work that same day.”

Alfille is but one of many patients who will find wrists fractures less of an inconvenience than in years past. New technology, which attaches small plates to the bone, has been tested over the past five years and has now had enough trials to be proved very effective at getting patients up and running months faster than before without risk of reinjuring the bone, Cohen said.

Wrist fractures are the most common type of broken bones, which means many people could potentially be incapacitated by the injury. Cohen said in the winter with slippery sidewalk and ice-crusted parking lots he treats three to four broken wrists a week. In addition to being of use on the wrist, the plates can also be used in ankle, leg, hip and other types of fractures.

“These small little locking plates have revolutionized the way we treat broken wrists,” Cohen said. “Patients experience less pain, fewer problems after surgery, recover quicker and rapidly recover their mobility and function.”

The small locking plates are secured internally with small screws placed directly into the bone. Once in place the plates are extremely secure and permanent. The patient can almost immediately enter rehabilitation therapy and start to return to normal activities, Cohen said. Using old technology, including casts, to set the wrist -- or external screws fixed into place with metal bars -- the patient would not enter therapy until about two months after the fracture occurred.

The process is much faster because the body is essentially tricked into thinking it is healed because it has been bolted back together internally, said Dr. John Fernandez, Cohen’s partner in orthopedics at Rush University Medical Center.

“We have a couple of students who were treated the old way versus the new way and the difference is dramatic,” Fernandez said. “Patients are able to use the hand immediately rather than waiting for the fracture to heal.”

This surgery will be most influential for seniors who are the most common victims of falls that result in broken or fractured bones, Cohen said.

“Many older people live alone and their independence is very important to them,” Cohen said. “To be able to make somebody independent within a few days is a huge difference than having someone rely on only one hand for all of their activities.”

Source: http://news.medill.northwestern.edu/chicago/news.aspx?id=76077

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