What is Multiple Sclerosis (MS)?
Multiple Sclerosis is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system of the body destroys the covering of the nervous system. The resulting nerve damage from this attack disrupts the natural communication between the brain and the body. It is a rare condition that requires a medical diagnosis and various lab tests. Some symptoms experienced by patients may include vision loss, chronic pain, fatigue, and impaired coordination.
MS can make it difficult for the brain to coordinate the activities of the body. Several treatments have been applied to help for long-term success, but some of these treatments may cause serious side effects to the patients and could even stop working after a while.
Once patients begin to exhaust traditional methods to help manage their condition and symptoms, they begin to search for alternative options. Today, there is current research showing promising results with regenerative medicine, also known as stem cell therapy.
What is Stem Cell Therapy?
Stem cell therapy utilizes the foundational scientific knowledge that stem cells are capable of turning into other different kinds of cells in the body. Mesenchymal stem cells have regenerative properties that make these cells the most commonly used and preferred source of stem cells for these treatments. They have the ability to repair tissues and when administered to target the brain tissues, they have the potential to help repair and regenerate damaged areas of the brain.
Providers can administer systemically through an intravenous (IV) delivery and a targeted approach through an intrathecal administration method. This delivers the stem cells to the cerebral spinal fluid which then passes the blood-brain barrier to the brain tissues. The procedure is minimally invasive and research has shown these modalities to be safe and well tolerate with patients.
How effective and safe is the treatment?
Stem cell therapy is still in its research phase but it has shown promising results. The most promising result has been the clinical trial that showed that 69% of patients who received the treatment did not have a relapse or any other MS-related disease five years after. More research will continue, but results so far give hope to patients with Multiple Sclerosis to help discover a new alternative option in managing their condition and potentially improving their quality of life.
This post was written by a medical professional at Stemedix Inc. At Stemedix we provide access to Regenerative Medicine for multiple sclerosis, also known as stem cell therapy for multiple sclerosis. Regenerative medicine has the natural potential to help improve symptoms sometimes lost from the progression of many conditions.
Comments are closed.