IO Core Bone Marrow Injections Changing Medicine

Osteoarthritis is one of the most diagnosed joint disorders that affects millions of people worldwide and it becomes increasingly common as you get old er. Of ten difficult to treat, Osteoarthritis causing many suffers to pursue surgical treatment options including an invasive total joint replacements. Affecting the cartilage on the ends of long bones, Osteoarthritis causes this cartilage to break down resulting in the bones rubbing together. This rubbing leads to
severe pain and deterioration of the bone.

The IO-Core Bone Marrow Injections provides an alternative to these invasive surgical procedures, and they can significantly improve joint health and functionality leaving you to live your life free of the joint pain caused by Osteoarthritis.

WHAT DAMAGE CAN OSTEOARTHRITIS CAUSE?

Osteoarthritis initially affects the cartilage on the end of bones in the joints, such as those found in your arms, legs, and hands. As this cartilage wears down, it causes the bones to rub against each other, leading to pain, stiffness and swelling. This joint disease can be debilitating and have a severe impact on your daily life. Simple daily activities such as walking, driving, getting up and down, going to the grocery store, etc. seem to become a task that causes more pain each day. Depending on what joints Osteoarthritis affects and if left untreated, it can cause severe disability and surgery to replace the joints if not attended to.

One of the major causes of Osteoarthritis development is the formation of bone marrow lesions. These lesions, also known as bone marrow edema can be seen with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or ultrasound. It was originally thought that these lesions were actual water stores in the bone and marrow, but they consist of a number of different cells and molecules that build up in the area.
Bone marrow lesions develop when Osteoarthritic damage to the bone and cartilage happens more quickly than your tissues can repair itself. This prevents the bone and cartilage from being able to recover, causing damage to occur. Studies have shown that patients with Osteoarthritis in the form of knee pain are 2.5 times more likely to have a bone marrow lesion compared to those with asymptomatic osteoarthritis.

HOW IO-CORE BONE MARROW INJECTIONS TREAT OSTEOARTHRITIS?

The IO-Core Bone Marrow Injections combines the most advanced regenerative medicine techniques available in medicine including PRP and Bone Marrow Aspirate. These approaches involve a core decompression, injection of autologous bone marrow aspirate or platelet-rich plasma, and the placement of an autologous bone dowel graft. Core decompression is a process where the physician extracts the part of the bone that is damaged. This allows the surgeon to leave the healthy bone intact while removing the portions that are causing your Osteoarthritis pain and prevent further damage. A core decompression reduces pressure in the bone, improves blood flow to the area to stimulate the healing process, and will preserve healthy bone tissue from deteriorating. The extracted sections of bone is then filled in using an allograft or autograft of demineralized bone matrix. This matrix can be combined with either platelet rich plasma or bone marrow aspirate. Both of these options contain important growth factors and proteins that have potential to accelerate the healing process and restore to a healthy function while generating new tissue and reducing scar tissue formation. The bone matrix combined with one of these Regenerative medicine techniques allows quick regrowth of the bone to promote a healthier joint.

Once the new matrix core is ready, it is placed in the joint to provide a scaffold for the new bone growth. This bone core is harvested from a person’s own body, with the most common area being the iliac crest on the top of the hip bone. By obtaining the bone core from the patient’s own body, it prevents any potential issues with rejection or compatibility issues that may be seen with donor tissues. This bone core serves as a graft that allows the bone remodeling process to work more efficiently and attach to the current, healthy bone more effectively. This entire process is done arthroscopically, meaning that no large incisions are made. This significantly reduces potential complications related to internal bleeding, poor wound healing, or infection. This procedure also carries a significantly shorter healing time compared to more
invasive surgeries.

The potential to alleviate the source of Osteoarthritis pain by removing bone marrow lesions has innovated the way physician’s are able to treat Osteoarthritis pain. With the IO-Core therapy patients are able to eliminate dependency on pain medication and allow them to start living a more active lifestyle. This is one differentiating factor between the IO-Core procedure and the other treatments available for treating Osteoarthritis. If you suffer from Osteoarthritic pain, the IO-Core Bone Marrow Injection treatment is an option that definitely deserves your attention.