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Essay On Facet Joint Syndrome

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Facet joint syndrome is a common disabling condition. Degeneration of the motion segment leads to a loss of height of the segment resulting in an athrosis of the facet joint. The degenerative changes in the joint result finally in a chronic inflammatory process. Injection of corticosteroids and oral pain medication are of little value in the long-term treatment. Advances in regenerative medicine revealed immune-modulatory properties of stem cells.
In a 58 year-old male, suffering from facet joint syndrome and spinal canal stenosis, adipose derived stem cells were injected into the facet joint under fluoroscopic guidance.
The patient remained pain free over a period of at least 6 months.
Injection of adipose derived stem cells might be a promising novel therapy for facet joint syndrome.

Introduction …show more content…

This process involves the immune system by initiating localized inflammatory responses. Such a reaction is followed by synthesis of pro-inflammatory cytokines and metalloproteinases.10 Because of the inflammatory nature of the syndrome, local injections of glucocorticoids into the affected joint have become a common treatment option. However the results of various studies suggest that these injections have a limited value in the long-term treatment of patients suffering from chronic low back pain.

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