Osteoarthritis is one of the most widespread diseases in the world, which significantly worsens the quality of life and working capacity of the population. In the last decade, mesenchymal stem cells have been increasingly used in the treatment of osteoarthritis. This is the only treatment strategy that allows to achieve an anti-inflammatory effect and restore the affected cartilage tissue at the same time.
The Institute of Cell Therapy in partnership with the Institute of Traumatology and Orthopedics of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine and Kyiv City Clinical Hospital No. 6 developed a method of treating osteoarthritis of the knee joint using stem cells of the umbilical cord and placenta. The method was tested in the clinical study “Treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee joint by multiple injection of human placental MSCs” (registered at clinicaltrials.gov under the number NCT04453111). Multiple intra-articular injection of allogeneic placental mesenchymal stem cells in knee osteoarthritis has been shown to be safe and can lead to clinical improvements within 1 year of follow-up, according to a clinical trial outcomes. The legendary Ukrainian football player Andriy Shevchenko confirmed the effectiveness of the latest treatment of gonarthrosis at the Clinic of the Institute of Cell Therapy on his own experience (more at the link https://www.stemcellclinic.com/andrij-shevchenko-pro-dosvid-likuvannya-stovburovymy-klitynamy-v-klinitsi -instytutu-klitynnoyi-terapiyi/).
In 2024, the scientific medical journal Scientific Reports published an article by a group of scientists from South Korea highlighting the experience of treating osteoarthritis of the knee joint with umbilical cord blood mesenchymal stem cells. The effectiveness of umbilical cord blood mesenchymal stem cell implantation in the study group (24 patients) was compared to the results of treatment in the control group (30 patients). Patients in the control group underwent surgical treatment of osteoarthritis, namely, a microdrilling operation combined with a high tibial osteotomy. The purpose of these measures is to stimulate the restoration of the cartilage tissue of the affected joint. The effectiveness of both methods in the treatment of medial osteoarthritis was noted, however, better results were observed in patients receiving cell therapy.
Source: Jung SH et al. Allogeneic umbilical cord blood-derived mesenchymal stem cell implantation versus microdrilling combined with high tibial osteotomy for cartilage regeneration. Sci Rep. 2024 (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38336978/)
