Regenerative medicine is beneficial for patients because it’s a form of therapy that uses their bodies’ own resources to heal itself. This form of therapy combines science with medicine to find ways for the body to heal, whether it be with blood plasma or stem cells.
The body has the capability to heal damaged tissues, organs and muscles through different forms of regenerative therapy. Along with tissues and organs, another benefit of regenerative medicine is that it can repair damaged skin, heal injury or decrease disease. Regenerative medicine may even reverse the effects of disease. The way the doctor chooses to treat the patient will depend on the injury at hand.
There are three major types of regenerative medicine. Rejuvenation, which boosts the body’s own ability to heal itself; replacement, which uses healthy cells to replace damaged cells in the body; and, regeneration, which uses a specific type of cell to restore damaged tissues. There are various benefits to all types of regenerative medicine depending on the injury or disease the patient has.
One type of regenerative medicine is stem cell therapy. Stem cells are undifferentiated cells in the body that can grow to become the type of cell that is needed in the area of disease or injury. The cells are pulled from one area and are relocated to an area of inflammation, injury or disease. The cells repair that area by then forming into the tissue, organs, muscle or even bone that are needed to heal the area.
Another type of regenerative medicine is PRP, or Platelet Rich Plasma, which uses one’s bloods plasma to heal injured areas of the body. The blood plasma is taken from the body and the platelets and plasma are separated and injected into the area of need. The PRP accelerates the healing process and encourages cell growth in the area.
