Injections of stem cells heal dogs' painful joints (also cats & horses)

[RamboLiberal]

Thought this might be of interest to the DU pet community.

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The fat stem cells appear to repair damaged joints and alleviate pain. A University of Pittsburgh researcher says the science behind the therapy is sound, but it could be several years before researchers have enough long-term data to offer such treatments to people.

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"Basically, we make an incision behind the dog's shoulder and take out a couple teaspoons of fat," said veterinarian Mike Hutchinson, owner of Animal General(Pittsburgh, PA area vet facility). "We pack it up and ship it to Vet-Stem, they separate out the stem cells, send them back to us and we inject the cells back into the dog, where he needs them."

Vet-Stem in San Diego has perfected its process of removing hundreds of thousands of adult stem cells from a few teaspoons of fat. Stem cells are found in many parts of the body and have the ability to turn into specialized cells that can repair injuries and replace damaged cells.

"With one little vial of fat collected from a dog, we've got multiple doses of stem cells that we can use immediately," said veterinarian Robert Harman, founder and CEO of Vet-Stem.

The company started the therapy in horses five years ago and has treated 3,000 equines. Since introducing the service to family pets, Vet-Stem has trained 1,000 veterinarians to remove fat and re-inject stem cells. One thousand more vets are learning the process. Nationwide, 1,200 dogs have received the therapy, along with a smaller number of cats.

Typically, a dog would come to a Vet-Stem-trained veterinarian on a Tuesday to have fat removed from an incision behind its front shoulder -- a location where the dog can't pick at stiches. The fat is sent that day by overnight mail to Vet-Stem. The company separates out the stem cells, puts them in ready-to-inject vials and mails them back to the vet. On Thursday, the vet injects the cells into the dog's joints to target problem areas, and circulates cells throughout the body through an IV.

Within one to two months, the owners should begin to notice their pets improving, Hutchinson said.

http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/cityregion/s_604743.html

[jillan]

1. That is fantastic news!

My last dog suffered with painful joints.
I used to give him special treats that contained Glucosamine & Chondroitin.
That seemed to help, but this is much more promising. It's so hard to watch them suffer.

[BrklynLiberal]

2. Thanks for this info. I will forward to all my friends who also have pets.