It may sound a bit like science fiction, but orthobiologics and regenerative medicine therapies are becoming a viable option for people searching for pain relief. For a local runner, this unique treatment of using her body's own cells allowed her to heal an achy knee joint and avoid early surgery.
“I started running when I was in middle school and in high school. I did mostly long distance running. I started running marathons when I was about 19 and did a handful of half marathons too. So it's just what I absolutely loved and enjoyed,” said Jaclyn Nordin.
Searching for Options to Avoid Surgery
Over time, those logged miles started becoming more and more painful for Jaclyn. Specifically in her right knee.
"My kneecap was tilted a little bit. So I had patella arthritis from the kneecap not being straight. So it kind of tilted the side and it wore away at some of my cartilage. And that was what was causing all the pain and the arthritis,” said Nordin.
For the better part of two decades, Jaclyn utilized steroid and gel injections to get by. But after the birth of her daughter, those efforts became less effective.
“It definitely wasn't doing much for any of the pain that I was experiencing. And I was restricted on doing the things that I loved to do. My knee would feel painful. It would swell. First thing in the morning, I noticed that first stretch took my breath away because the pain was so bad. So I just started reaching out to some of the best orthopedic surgeons, looking for a better option than getting a knee replacement at 40 years old,” said Nordin.
"Not enough people know that there are other options out there. The traditional orthopedic model is you do injections until it stops working and then you replace the joint or do the surgery. But there's more we can do than just steroid and surgery and so I want to make sure that people know there are other options for people and to have respect for the cells that God has given us and being able to use those to try to get rid of your pain,” said Jon Buchanan, MD, a sports medicine physician with Avera Orthopedics.
Spark Healing With Your Own Cells
Jaclyn's search led her to Dr. Buchanan and to orthobiologic treatments to try and activate her body's immune response to help heal her knee.
“The simplest way is by using your blood. If your arthritis isn't too bad, the tendinitis is fairly mild, then I can use some of your blood and take the platelets out of the blood and inject that where it's needed. And then it wakes up stem cells that live in that area and then it can heal that area. So you can do PRP, you can do PRP with the fat, or you can do PRP with the fat and the bone marrow,” said Dr. Buchanan.
"I was pretty desperate and having a lot of pain. And so I knew that I wanted a less invasive procedure. And then when I found out that it was stem cells that were coming from my own body and injecting it into my knee, I was willing to give it a shot and see if it worked,” said Nordin.
“In her case, because she had so much arthritis, we needed to do more than just the PRP,” said Dr. Buchanan.
“I'm about one year out from getting my stem cell adipose bone marrow transplant, in which they took bone marrow from my hip and put it in my knee. I started feeling drastic results around three to six months. And being a year out, I have no restrictions and I feel amazing. So yeah, it's kind of emotional too,” said Nordin.
Futuristic Medicine Available Today
“The way I see it, orthobiologics is really the future of medicine. My goal is that the more cases like Jaclyn we get, the more cases that return, then it's going to be more mainstream and get more help for more patients,” said Dr. Buchanan.
“Dr. Buchanan is, you know, I always say the difference between a good doctor and a great doctor, the great doctors are the ones that are willing to improve patients' lives with the newest and greatest technology. It's wonderful. So yeah, it did. It changed my life,” said Nordin.
Every 12 months Jaclyn will have an injection of her body's own blood platelets to help boost and protect the cells in her kneecap, but otherwise she has zero restrictions. Learn more about orthobiologics and other regenerative medicines
Orthobiologic treatments, including but not limited to platelet-rich plasma (PRP), stem cell therapy, and related regenerative medicine procedures, are currently not covered by most insurance providers. Patients are responsible for the full cost of these treatments. It is recommended you check with your insurance carrier for specific coverage details.
