It is estimated that as many as 50 million Americans are currently suffering from some sort of chronic pain. If you’re in that group, you already know how it can impact your quality of life and make daily tasks feel like mountainous duties.

Sometimes chronic pain can be managed with NSAIDs and other over-the-counter pain-relieving medicines. However, these medications tend to lose their efficacy as people build up a tolerance to them over time.

If you’ve tried everything to manage your chronic pain but just can’t get it under control, it may be time to consider regenerative medicine, also known as stem cell therapy.

What Are Stem Cells?

Stem cells are unspecialized cells that can turn into whatever type of cell your body needs. There are two main types of stem cells: mesenchymal stem cells and hematopoietic stem cells.

Hematopoietic stem cells can turn into any type of blood cell, whereas mesenchymal stem cells are much more flexible and can replicate almost any other type of specialized cell, including bone, organ, muscle, and skin cells.

How Are Stem Cells Harvested? 

The stem cells used in most forms of stem cell therapy are harvested from the same individual’s body. Mesenchymal stem cells can be harvested from your adipose fat, while hematopoietic stem cells can be harvested from the bone marrow in your hip.

Stem cells can also be harvested from Wharton’s jelly, which lines the inside of the umbilical cord. These stem cells are harvested after a newborn baby’s umbilical cord is cut and discarded with the placenta, so it has absolutely no effect on the baby.

How Can Stem Cell Therapy Help?

Stem cell therapy can deliver a potent punch of unspecialized stem cells directly to the source of your pain. The stem cells then seek out damaged areas and specialize themselves in whatever way is necessary to replace the damaged cells. This may help regenerate damaged tissues and alleviate chronic pain.

For example, in the case of osteoporosis, stem cells may differentiate into bone-forming cells called osteoblasts. These cells’ functions include increasing bone and mineral density and decreasing pain.

Are There Any Side Effects to Stem Cell Therapy? 

As of today, there are no known long-term side effects to stem cell therapy. You may experience some irritation, swelling, or discomfort at the injection or incision site, but no adverse side effects have been reported.

This post was written by a medical professional at https://www.stemedix.com. At Stemedix we provide access to Regenerative Medicine. Regenerative medicine has the natural potential to help improve symptoms sometimes lost from the progression of many conditions.