Thursday, October 27, 2011

Orthopedic Stem Cells: Using Adult Stem Cells to Treat Back Pain


When it comes to stem cells, there is often a lot of mystique surrounding them.  We hear from the media that we can create a human being out of a bundle of cells, which is not necessarily true.  We also tend to look at embryonic stem cells as being the only type of stem cell.  With these types of embryonic stem cells, one idea is to be able to create a liver or kidney in a Petri dish, which is not controllable or feasible at this point, and the work being done by the Orthopedic Stem Cell Institute isn’t about that.

When we look at stem cell types, we have embryonic stem cells on one hand and adult stem cells on the other.  The characteristics of each of these are not like other cells.  For instance, a liver cell can divide but it will only ever be a liver cell.  These stem cells, both embryonic and adult, can turn into different types of cells.  The embryonic stem cells can really turn into any cell type, but adult stem cells are limited as far as the cells they can turn into.  This depends upon environment or niche and what they are already programmed to become.  A lot of people think there is a lot of promise with embryonic stem cells and there is, although we are not quite there yet.

We are still at the forefront of stem cell technology and embryonic stem cells in particular. With those cells, we do not have the ability to control what types of tissue they turn into. For example, we could be trying to manipulate these cells to turn into kidneys, but they might start to develop as pancreatic cells, which is troublesome.  Another key with all stem cells is that they can proliferate quite a bit, usually at a higher rate than just a regular somatic cell.  Although this sounds good at first glance, the issue with this, particularly with embryonic stem cells, is we cannot control that division.  Hence, these cells can keep going and going without dying.  In the normal bodily process, cells are programmed to die after a certain time, but these embryonic stem cells can evade that action and continue dividing, which takes on the characteristic of cancer cells.  In some animal studies, an issue that keeps arising is development of tumors in some of these animals. It is difficult to predict if tumors are going to form when using some sort of embryonic stem cell treatment.  This is still a scary area through which we are still trying to navigate.

However, the focus of the Orthopedic Stem Cell Institute is on adult mesenchymal stem cells. On the whole, the media does not give a lot of attention to these kinds of stem cells, as using them avoids any kind of ethical or controversial issues. There is a great amount of research being done on adult mesenchymal stem cells, however, because they are very powerful.

First off, we can control what cell type they turn into much more easily.  For example, the treatment used by the Orthopedic Stem Cell Institute focuses on Mesenchymal precursor cells (MPC).  Mesenchymal means these cells are not going to turn into any kind of blood product such as a red blood cell or white blood cell, although they are derived from bone marrow.  The fact that they are precursor cells means these MPCs are only going to differentiate into one of a few cell types.  They are either going to become bone cells, i.e., osteoblasts, or chondrocytes, i.e., cartilaginous tissue such that we see in intervertebral discs and joints, etc.  All of that really depends on the environment in which we place these adult stem cells where it is well suited to do this.  For example, we can inject these MPCs into a bone fracture, and because the cells are surrounded by bone tissue, these cells will receive signals from the surrounding cells that tell them to turn into bone. However, the cells we use will be injected into a disc or joint, and the cells composing the disc and joint tissue will signal the stem cells to develop into similar tissue.  Again, there is no chance of any sort of pancreatic cell or nerve cell type spontaneously forming because we are using certain adult stem cell types, which are limited and cannot turn into anything like that.  In addition, as the tissue surrounding the disc and joint is relatively avascular, there is not really any worry of these cells migrating through the blood stream to somewhere else in the body and causing any sort of problem.  As far as the proliferation issue with embryonic stem cells, we have not seen this issue with adult stem cells in terms of dividing exponentially without ceasing.  There is almost a preset limit to how many times these adult stem cells will divide.

Through the Orthopedic Stem Cell Institute, the Spine Institute treats lumber and cervical spine conditions using Adult Stem Cells using an FDA-approved stem cell therapy and is also involved with an FDA clinical trial. Visit the stem cell page on our website for more information on both.

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Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Matthew D. Pouliot, DO, Joins Staff of The Spine Institute


Dr. Matthew D. Pouliot has joined the staff of Rocky Mountain Associates in Orthopedic Medicine and The Spine Institute in Loveland, CO. Dr. Pouliot will specialize in treating adult and pediatric patients with acute and chronic spinal and orthopedic pain.

A graduate of Kansas City University of Medicine and Bio Sciences, Dr. Pouliot completed his residency in physical medicine and rehabilitation at the State University of New York Upstate Medical University, where he served one year as chief resident. He completed his fellowship in pain medicine at SUNY Upstate Medical University in the department of anesthesia. He is board certified in physical medicine and rehabilitation, and board eligible in pain medicine.

Dr. Pouliot’s specialty at RMA Ortho and The Spine Institute will be in interventional pain medicine techniques for conditions including acute and chronic spinal and joint pain, complex regional pain syndrome, and other various pain syndromes using advanced interventional pain  techniques such as image guided spinal injections,  Botox® injections for myofascial pain and headaches, and implanted spinal cord stimulators for chronic spinal and nerve pain.  Dr Pouliot will also be participating in the stem cell therapy program.  In addition, Dr Pouliot is trained to perform EMG and nerve conduction studies to aid in diagnosing common neuropathies and spinal disorders, and he is buprenorphine certified for opioid detox and level II certified for worker’s compensation in Colorado.

Those looking for assistance in managing their pain are encouraged to contact RMA Ortho and The Spine Institute at 800-795-5487 or 970-669-8881.

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Monday, October 10, 2011

Dr. Kenneth Pettine Named to Becker's "150 Physician Leaders in the Ambulatory Surgery Center Industry"


Becker's ASC Review is pleased to announce the publication of its list, "150 Physician Leaders in the Ambulatory Surgery Center Industry," which recognizes outstanding physician leaders in surgery centers and ASC-focused companies across the country. Dr. Kenneth A. Pettine of The Spine Institute is included on this list.

The physician leaders named to this list support ASCs and surgery center companies by bringing their surgical cases to the outpatient setting, pioneering new clinical developments in surgery centers and advising ASC leaders on operational and clinical issues. The chosen physicians were selected for the list based on their leadership in surgery centers or ASC-focused companies and their experience advocating for surgery centers to other physicians, payors and governmental leaders.

Physicians do not pay and cannot pay to be included on this list. There are never fees involved in Becker's ASC Review lists. Recognized providers are free to note their inclusion through marketing materials, website promotion, press releases and other media materials without paying a fee.


The full-length version of this list can be found online here:
150 Physician Leaders in the Ambulatory Surgery Center Industry

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