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© Copyright 2019. Regrow Biosciences Pvt Ltd. All Rights Reserved
Blog
The Potential Benefits Of Non-Surgical Avascular Necrosis Treatment
22nd May 2023
As we grow older, we usually expect our bodies to creek and groan at various places due to general wear and tear. These pains are usually not severe and require essential exercise to avoid any significant damage or pain. For most parts, you would not be wrong to assume this. It is highly unlikely that we even consult a doctor when we have pain in our joints.
Not many people are familiar with the condition called avascular necrosis or osteonecrosis. Avascular necrosis is the death of bone tissue due to a disruption in blood supply. Bone undergoes frequent wear and tear and has the ability to regenerate as long as there is a healthy circulation of blood to the bone. Without this blood supply, the bone tissue does not regenerate and eventually, the wear and tear progresses to a point where the bone dies. This is a condition commonly seen at the hip where the femoral head collapses. Most often, avascular necrosis treatment involves major surgery and even total hip placement which can place the person in a very long period of rest and rehabilitation. However, new and improved methods of avascular necrosis treatment include bone cell therapy that is fast gaining popularity.
Avascular necrosis is not a disease of the elderly. Avascular necrosis has very specific causes but may go unnoticed till later stages of the disease as symptoms show up only later. Understanding the causes that lead to avascular necrosis is important to help avoid or diagnose this condition early. Early diagnosis also allows many more options for avascular necrosis treatment that is non-surgical and can slow down the progress of the disease considerably. Understanding underlying causes is important to consider for avascular necrosis treatment as well. Here are some prevalent causes that are known to lead to avascular necrosis.
Trauma or injury: When there is an injury, chances are that some blood vessels may have been damaged that help circulate blood to the hip. This can cause reduced blood flow which can lead to avascular necrosis. This is a common cause of avascular necrosis.
Steroids: High doses of corticosteroids have been found to be prevalent in many cases of avascular necrosis patients. In more recent times, steroid medication to treat COVID-19 has been found to be a leading cause of avascular necrosis amongst people in their late 20s to 30s as well.
Alcohol overuse: Long-term habitual intake of alcohol has also been associated with avascular necrosis. When blood contains high levels of alcohol, there is also an increase in the levels of cholesterol and triglycerides. This causes fatty deposits to occur in the bone marrow that blocks out blood flow to bone tissue. This causes bone decay leading to avascular necrosis.
Radiotherapy: Bone tissue can get affected by radiotherapy for cancer patients.
Smoking: Smoking narrows blood vessels and can contribute to other causes that lead to avascular necrosis.
Blood diseases: Blood diseases like sickle cell anemia can lead to avascular necrosis.
One of the major challenges of diagnosing avascular necrosis is that the signs usually appear only in the later stages of the disease by which the bone has reached an advanced stage of decay. These are some signs that are symptomatic of avascular necrosis.
1) Hip pain that comes and goes as you place or take off the pressure on the joints can be a sign of bone decay that will require avascular necrosis treatment.
2) Limited range of motions or even limping or change of gait while walking that is noticeable.
3) Difficulty walking, standing, or climbing stairs.
4) Being someone who has been taking steroid medication regularly for a period of time.
5) Being an excessive and habitual drinker that can lead to avascular necrosis.
Traditionally, the most common method of avascular necrosis treatment consists of major surgery which could be:
Core decompression: This consists of drilling holes into the bone to allow blood circulation and stimulate bone repair.
Bone grafting: This is where healthy bone tissue is taken from another part of the body and used in the affected area to help strengthen the joint. This procedure may be used along with core decompression.
Joint replacement: Here the affected joint, most likely the hip, is replaced with an artificial joint made of metal or ceramic.
Non-surgical methods of avascular treatment mainly consist of pain management or bone cell therapy. Pain management is a temporary form of treatment that can be used in the early stages but is not a permanent strategy for avascular necrosis treatment.
Bone cell therapy can be used to treat avascular necrosis before the condition gets too advanced. With 90% efficacy bone cell therapy requires a fraction of the time to heal as opposed to surgical methods of avascular necrosis treatment.
Bone cell therapy consists of two steps where healthy bone tissue is first extracted from the patient. This healthy bone tissue is then taken to a lab to develop a bone cell culture. The next step is when the doctor removes the dead cells and injects the bone cell-forming culture into the affected joint. This cell culture begins to form healthy bone tissue and restores the joint. The Indian biotechnology firm Regrow Biosciences has developed bone cell therapy called OSSGROW® which has provided over 1300 patients with bone cell therapy that has alleviated all symptoms of avascular necrosis effectively.
If you or someone you know is in need of a consultation for bone cell therapy to learn more or weigh out options, feel free to contact us at Regrow Biosciences, India’s leading biotech company for the research, development and commercialized cell and stem cell products addressing degenerative diseases and conditions.
The procedure for bone cell therapy uses the patient’s own cells - no foreign or artificial material is used. It avoids any chance of metal leeching as in the case of artificial joints for a joint replacement.
Bone cell therapy does not require a highly invasive surgery such as a total joint replacement
Bone cell therapy reduces the time required for rehabilitation that would be required for total joint replacement surgery.
Bone cell therapy avoids the need for repeated procedures in the future. Joint replacement surgery requires additional surgery every 10-15 years.
Avascular necrosis is a serious degenerative disease of the bone that occurs generally at the hip and can completely immobilize the patient. Treatment is required and generally highly invasive surgical methods like total joint replacement were the only option considered viable for the patient. However, this requires a major surgery that can require a very long period of rehabilitation and can last for 10-15 years before the patient requires remission surgery. For these reasons, bone cell therapy is a non-surgical, non-invasive procedure that uses the patient’s own cells to regenerate bone tissue completely and restore mobility in a fraction of the time required for joint replacement surgery.
How is avascular necrosis diagnosed?
Imaging tests such as X-rays and MRI can diagnose avascular necrosis in any part of the body.
Can avascular necrosis be healed through medication and rest?
Avascular necrosis cannot be cured through medication or rest. It can help slow down the progression of the disease but eventually needs avascular necrosis treatment. This can be either through surgical or non-surgical methods like bone cell therapy.
Are lifestyle changes required to rehabilitate from avascular necrosis treatment?
If you are a habitual drinker and smoker or regularly taking steroids, your doctor will recommend some changes. While steroid use will be reviewed by the doctor, there is no question but to entirely stop smoking. The doctor may recommend you completely stop drinking alcohol as well if your condition was brought about by excessive drinking. Apart from that your doctor will also recommend that you keep an eye on your cholesterol regularly.
Is avascular necrosis hereditary?
Avascular necrosis not caused by trauma or injury is a complicated diagnosis of causes where some factors may still remain unknown. It is best to consult a doctor if you have a close family member that suffers from avascular necrosis and give your medical history where the doctor may recommend an X-ray if you are facing any discomfort around a joint.
Is bone cell therapy for avascular necrosis available in India?
Absolutely. Regrow Biosciences is a biotech company in India that has been the first company in india to receive market authorization and commercial sale license for OSSGROW® (bone cell therapy) and CARTIGROW® (cartilage cell therapy) from DCGI in 2017. To learn more about bone cell therapy contact Regrow Biosciences.
