Follow this blog:
RSS

A new blood treatment for Olympians, other star athletes

By | July 12, 2012, 7:46 PM PDT

How do you treat chronic pain? Common answers might be painkillers, acupuncture and rest.

But for professional athletes like Kobe Bryant, golfer Vijay Singh, the Yankees’ Alex Rodriguez and Olympic volleyball player Lindsey Berg, treatment can be something much more novel and expensive.

They’re all devotees of a new procedure called Regenokine, developed by Dr. Peter Wehling in Dusseldorf, Germany, which has generated buzz not only because of his A-list clientele but also because his technique has not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

How the treatment works

In a Regenokine treatment, a patient’s blood is withdrawn, incubated at a slightly higher temperature (in order to “give the blood a fever,” according to Wired) and spun in a centrifuge. At that point, the blood cells produce proteins that decrease inflammation and push cellular growth.

Sometimes, Dr. Wehling adds more anti-inflammatory proteins. Then, he injects the final solution back into the aggravated area. The treatment takes five days and costs 6,000 euros (about $7,400).

His procedure is one in a new cateogory of treatments called “biologic medicine,” which extract a patient’s own tissues, manipulate them and then reintroduce them to the body.

The field, which is rapidly growing, includes another blood-spinning called platelet-rich plasma, or P.R.P., in which the blood is spun in order to produce many platelet cells, which aid in healing.

These procedures are marked by their intention to treat not just the mechanical problems in the problem joints but to directly address inflammation as a problem and not only as a symptom.

And the science?

Because this procedure is so young — just a few years old — there is very little evidence of its effectiveness. Grantland reports that Regenokine showed the most promise in a 2008 study of 376 patients who were given injections either of saline, hyaluronic acid or manipulated blood. Only 32% of patients found relief in the first two groups, while more than two-thirds of the patients in the Regenokine group felt better.

An American doctor who employs the technique says that, when combined with lifestyle changes, such as a healthier diet and sleeping routine, the therapy has a success rate approaching 90%.

But, as Dr. Freddie Fu, a professor of orthopedic surgery at the University of Pittsburgh, points out, the therapy’s gimmick is to make patients think it’s safe because it uses their own bodily fluids. But he conceded:

There has been some impressive research done already, and there is a good scientific fundament to do more research. However, before the F.D.A. approves, more high-quality independent trials have to be done in order to prove the effectiveness.

Related on SmartPlanet:

via: The New York Times, Wired, Grantland

photo: Keith Allison/Flickr

Start your week smarter with our weekly e-mail newsletter. It's your cheat sheet for good ideas. Get it.

Laura Shin

About Laura Shin

Laura Shin is a contributing editor for SmartPlanet.

Laura Shin

Laura Shin

Contributing Editor

Laura Shin has written for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Los Angeles Times, Audubon and SolveClimate.com. She is currently a senior editor at LearnVest.com. Previously, she worked at Newsweek, the New York Times and Wall Street Journal. She holds degrees from Stanford University and Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism.

Follow her on Twitter.

Laura Shin

Laura Shin

In the unlikely event that Laura has a professional or financial relationship with a company she writes about, it will be prominently disclosed.

She writes for SmartPlanet and is not an employee of CBS.

If you liked this, don't miss...
1
Comments

Join the conversation!

Follow via:
RSS
0 Votes
+ -
Excellent Design regarding Nike Football Shoes and boots
It might be produced once Nike's fresh ads "Write That Future", that casino shoe businesses dividing within Spain offers established electronic digital pinball products offering it has the Snobs A line cleats/football boot styles within it has the This town in addition to Barcelona locations, introduction that online installations in the repeat Universe Mug. Not excellent within ads, Nike organization would like to set up a good graphic which Nike shoes and boots tend to be high-nechnology, put on these folks is most likely the greatest within football industry. So certainly within NIke's Mercurial Superfly Watery vapor III football shoes and boots, which C Lo put on within Universe Mug.
It really is that exclusive advancement within Nike's background, Nike showcased it has the splashiest advancement, earlier in the this year Universe Mug: That Mercurial Superfly Watery vapor II Football Cleat. In addition to that hotrod appears to be, essentially the most nike tiempolegend iv elite challenging advancement appeared to be that "adaptive traction technologies, " allowing you that pegs in the cleats to positively adjust to lawn conditions.
Posted by finelycheng
20th Jul
Join the conversation
Formatting +
BB Codes - Note: HTML is not supported in forums
  • [b] Bold [/b]
  • [i] Italic [/i]
  • [u] Underline [/u]
  • [s] Strikethrough [/s]
  • [q] "Quote" [/q]
  • [ol][*] 1. Ordered List [/ol]
  • [ul][*] · Unordered List [/ul]
  • [pre] Preformat [/pre]
  • [quote] "Blockquote" [/quote]

Join the SmartPlanet community and join the conversation! Signing up is fast and free. Don't wait -- we want to hear your opinion!