Dec 29, 2020
“Hello, I thought you would like to know that my stem cell in my left knee has worked. I didn’t expect it to take so long but I have had little to no pain for the past two months. Thank you all again for your care and please advise your patients to be patient! If not for Covid, I would have had knee replacement several months ago. Only good thing about Covid!”
I received this e-mail message of gratitude this morning and I began to think what this patient’s recovery might have been following a Total Knee Replacement (TKR). In the latter scenario, maximum medical improvement is not realized on the average for over six months or longer. Following a Stem Cell procedure, Maximum Medical Improvement may take six months or longer. In the population of patients who undergo a TKR, 40% are left with an incomplete recovery; that is, some pain and a significant permanent loss of motion. In those who opt for the Stem Cell intervention to relieve symptoms of arthritis and improve functional capacity, our data suggest 10% of patients don’t experience satisfaction. Following a failed Total Knee Replacement, outcome, the choices are to accept the permanent alteration of life style or undergo yet a second major surgical procedure; namely, a revision (ouch). Following a Stem cell procedure that doesn’t provide the sought-after outcome, we still offer a needle and not a knife to improve the end results.
Looking back at 2020 and looking forward to 2021, based on observations following our regenerative medicine interventions, I will adjust my post intervention management with a more concentrated Growth Factor/ PRP booster. Our evidence-based results over the past several months using Growth Factors in higher concentrations have been most rewarding. As many readers of this Blog are aware, I am working closely with Personalized Stem Cells, Inc. and the FDA to help launch the next Adipose based Stem Cell Clinical Trial. It is our hope that the Trial will be approved by the end of Q1 or the start of Q2. In the interim, if you are experiencing pain and functional limitation from knee arthritis, consider a Growth Factor /PRP concentrate intervention. While there is an out-of-pocket fee for the treatment to keep you going, ultimately, for those who meet the inclusion criteria for the PSC Clinical Trial, there will be a facility fee but no out of pocket expense for the entire Adipose Based Stem Cell undertaking.
To learn more, follow my website at www.sheinkopmd.com.
To schedule a consultation call (312) 475-1893
Tags: arthritis, arthritis treatment, regenerative medicine, stem cell, stem cell therapy
Nov 13, 2020
Tono-Bungay by H.G. Wells, tells the story of a miraculous cure-all, Tono-Bungay, that is in fact nothing other than a pleasant-tasting liquid with no positive effects. Nonetheless, when the young George Ponderevo is employed by his uncle Edward to help market this ineffective medicine, he finds his life overwhelmed by its sudden success. Soon, the worthless substance is turned into a formidable fortune.
H.G. Wells first published the book in 1909, but he may well have been describing the relatively unregulated market place for the charlatans and camp followers promoting Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cells in 2020. As an orthopedic surgeon with an ethos of helping arthritic patients postpone, perhaps avoid a major joint replacement, I am happy to share the October 14, 2020, press release post: “The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS) continues to demonstrate its commitment to advancing the quality of musculoskeletal care in a fully transparent and scientific way. Debuting today as a new member benefit, the AAOS Biologics Dashboard is a dynamic online tool designed to help orthopaedic surgeons navigate the FDA approval status of biologic-based interventions. The development of the AAOS Biologics Dashboard is just one of several efforts within the Academy’s Biologics Initiative that offers evidence-based guidance to the musculoskeletal health community.”
Orthobiologics for the Musculoskeletal System
Orthobiologics is an evolving frontier. As new therapies, such as regenerative medicine therapies and stem-cell injections, become increasingly popular due to their potential to regenerate tissue and enhance bone healing and reduce pain, the AAOS continues to recognize a need for reliable and credible sources, of evidence-based therapies. These new tools further validate my ongoing commitment in separating science from anecdote with the goal of helping my patients receive the highest quality of evidence-based care.
What was to have initially taken place this month, basically a purge of the products not FDA approved in the marketplace, has been delayed until May of 2021. In my practice, I can assure my patient that all care will anticipate the FDA rules and be compliant with the FDA regulatory apparatus by prior screening on the new AAOS Biologics Dashboard. Although there is no board certification for a regenerative medicine or stem cell physician, look for the letters FAAOS after the M.D., as they describe membership in the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons and is your protection and quality assurance if you chose to undergo a stem cell or cellular orthopedic procedure.
To schedule a consultation, call (312) 475-1893. My web site is accessed via www.sheinkopmd.com
Tags: cellular therapy, musculoskeletal system, stem cell therapy, treating muscle pain
Jul 13, 2020
We certainly are living in changing times and daily uncertainties, but my practice continues. Over the years, I have noted that when there is public angst, I have a bit freer time to review our outcomes. Alfred E. Neuman, the mascot for Mad Magazine during its heyday, had a motto “What, me worry?”; and I try to live by that motto. What I have learned from review of outcomes is that More Is Better; both in the quantity of biologics administered and the number of times repeated over a period of years.
Stem Cells Clinical Trial Update
By the end of July, we will have completed recruiting our Personalized Stem Cells Clinical Trial allotted number of patients. While the Adipose based Stem Cell Trial had started in the fall of 2019, all was put on hold until about a month ago owing to the Pandemic. Our initial observation is that there has been a significant decrease of symptoms and improved function in those who underwent liposuction and the knee intervention prior to the February temporary suspension of the Trial. The hope is that sometime this fall, the PSC Trial will allow recruitment of patients with significant symptoms and limitations generated by bilateral knee osteoarthritic involvement. At the same time, PSC will seek approval from the FDA for permission to expand the number of stem cells available for a patient by culturing.
Regenerative Medicine Update
While all this is taking place, please be reminded that our practice offers several options that have proven successful over time or with repeat procedures. First and foremost is the use of bone marrow derived stem cells, growth factors (cytokines), platelets and precursor cells in the arthritic joint. Many patients have returned both for a repeat intervention after some years or for attention to an additional symptomatic and function limiting joint. The patients, including myself, who have undergone several biologic injections be it proprietary, compounded, platelet rich plasma or the more recently available acellular amniotic fluid, have really benefited from the repeated series.
Last of all, I want to remind the reader that interested patients may access Adipose derived Stem cells outside of the PSC Clinical Trial if interested on a fee for service basis. The advantage of such is that several joints may be treated at the same sitting. In the latter scenario, a mini liposuction is completed and the recovered adipose tissue is prepared for immediate joint intervention via a methodology introduced by Lipogems. The end result of the Lipogems process is micronized adipose tissue; it has become quite popular in several biologic practices around the United States.
If you wish to explore these Regenerative and Orthobiologic options for an arthritic joint or joints, you may visit my web site and access my webinar at www.sheinkopmd.com. Even better would be to seek consultation in my office; you may schedule by calling (312) 475-1893.
Tags: orthobiologics, regenerative medicine, stem cell therapy
Apr 30, 2020
Or: Why the Vice President “I tested negative” should wear a mask
Types of Testing for COVID-19 Immunity
There are two types of COVID-19 tests: molecular and serological. Molecular tests (PCR) look for the presence of a virus’s genetic material, showing that there is an active infection. Those are the tests that require a swab to be shoved through the back of your nose and into your throat to collect a specimen. While the Molecular PCR test has a higher rate of sensitivity than the serological, it will only show infection, not if the person has the IgG antibody. The IgG antibody is present after a person had the COVID-19 virus and successful fought off the virus, hopefully having immunity now. Serological tests (Rapid Antibody) look for antibodies to the virus in the blood, the presence of (IgG) which indicates there was an infection in the past. It will also show the (IgM) antibody which demonstrates the person is currently infected with the virus and fighting off the infection.
While the molecular tests (PCR) for COVID-19 have been around since the beginning of February, serological tests weren’t authorized until April 1. Many people see these tests as a way to prove immunity against the virus, allowing those who test positive and possess the IgG antibody “only” to resume their normal lives, free from the threat of contracting the virus again. We don’t yet know for sure that these antibodies confer immunity, nor for how long that immunity lasts if they do, but past history of SARS infections, people who possessed the antibody after successfully fighting off that infection had built up immunity for 2-3 years. Enough time until a vaccine is developed for COVID-19.
If a test identifies individuals who have the IgG antibody, it means they successfully fought off the virus and may have immunity if they were to come into contact with someone who has the COVID-19 virus, or when the virus comes back in the Fall. Additionally, it will show who currently has it and if their body is fighting the virus off, the IgM marker. IgG is the more important antibody class, since IgM secreting patients might not seroconvert. IgG positive patients doesn’t mean they can’t be reinfected- the jury is still out on that one.
COVID-19 and Comparative Religion
On a lighter note, long ago at the University of Illinois in Urbana/Champaign, once I had been accepted to Medical School, after having completed a very intense, mandatory, at the time premed curriculum, I decided to seek an education and, took a course, in Comparative Religions. Most immigrants and their first-generation American children grew up in relatively closed communities; it was time for me to see the world. Below is a teaching that might have, or could have, come from that course:
When it comes to the prohibition of eating bats, it seems the Torah repeats the prohibition not just once but twice. Regarding the Hebrew word tinshames (Leviticus, 11:18), Rashi says “it resembles a mouse and flies about at night.” Clearly, a bat.
Then, just one verse later, the Bible prohibits the consumption of an atalef, which is also translated as bat. Is this a biblical warning against the dangers of eating these creatures?
Tags: coronavirus immunity, COVID-19, covid-19 immunity, covid-19 testing, immunity and testing for COVID-19
Mar 30, 2020
Every July 4th through Labor Day, from 1945 until 1954, my family would pack up the car and head off to spend the summer in Glenn, Michigan, several blocks from the lake. We lived in Humboldt Park on Division Street in Chicago. It was a third floor, one-bedroom apartment with a den. Air conditioning was not yet readily available. My brother and I shared the pull-out couch in the den. My father would drive out past the Gary Works Steel mills to Glenn each Friday night and return home on Sunday night so he wouldn’t miss work. He was a self-employed cabinet maker, having learned both his trade and the English language after fleeing Poland before WW2. He would take his yearly two-week vacation and spend it in the rented “cottage” ($50 for six weeks) equipped with an outhouse and a real ice box. The ice man came with a block twice a week. As there were no interstate highways or toll roads at the time, the drive would take 3 to 4 hours each way.
Social Distancing to Prevent the Spread of Illness
In medical school while studying infectious disease, I learned that the Summer 1952 Polio Epidemic had afflicted 57,628 Americans resulting in 3,145 deaths. It was only then when I realized the reason behind our yearly migration for Social Distancing. My family was avoiding the overcrowding that resulted in the spread of Polio, although, until Salk and Sabin, no one knew how. As an Orthopedic Surgeon at Children’s Memorial Hospital between 1974 to 1983, there were still several iron lungs in use to support children with respiratory distress, of varying causation, for prolonged periods. In the present COVID-19 Pandemic, the means of disease transfer is well understood. What remains to be done is the development of a treatment and a vaccination rendering immunity.
I share the following document from The Personalized Stem Cell group with whom I am an investigator for arthritis. I thought you would appreciate the government and White House briefings (two calls already with VP Task Force):
- We are manufacturing large quantities of allogeneic donor MSCs for treatment of COVID-19 patients
- Have approval of IRB for protocol
- Filing with FDA next week for emergency IND
- Attached draft of protocol justification manuscript
“Situation • The government has asked private biopharmaceutical companies to step up • Many Americans will die or have long term disability from COVID-19 • Critical we find treatments to keep people off ventilators and reduce mortality • PSC has 17 years of stem cell experience and has deployable resources to treat COVID-19 patients, but needs capital and fast track regulatory access
Why Stem Cell Therapy for COVID-19*
How patients die
- Massive inflammation by the body’s over-reaction to the viral invasion
- Lung inflammation prevents oxygen getting to the bloodstream
- Many patients will die even if a ventilator is available
Stem cell therapy – Scientific published evidence*
- Reduce lung damage and inflammation
- Improve oxygen supply to the body
- Repair damaged lung and prevent scar tissue
- Produce natural antibiotics and antivirals
- Clear edema and fluid from the lung
How Effective – Scientific Published Evidence*
- Reduce death loss by 50%-90%
- Reduce days in the ICU
- Reduce need for ventilator
- Clinical data that stem cells work against COVID-19 and other viral diseases
- Over 20 clinical studies started in China in just the last 60 days with early published striking results
How Safe – Scientific Published Evidence*
- Thousands of patients safely treated with stem cells in hundreds of clinical trials for a variety of diseases with very limited side effects
- Excellent published safety records
- Stem cells approved for many clinical uses in Europe, Canada, Korea, Japan, and Australia
*see accompanying manuscript on stem cells”
I will post the manuscript in my next blog post. To learn more, call (312) 475-1893. You may email about stem cells for COVID-19 at me at [email protected].
Tags: coronavirus, COVID-19, how can stem cells be used for COVID-19, social distancing, stem cell therapy
Mar 10, 2020
On Thursday, a report appeared in the South China Morning Post that reviewed the case of an elderly woman in an Intensive Care Unit in China. She had been there for two weeks and her organs were clearly failing, so the Chinese doctors got approval to use stem cells that had been culture expanded in the lab. After the first two treatments and within days she was able to get out of bed; and then after the third injection, she was able to leave the ICU and was found to be COVID-19 (Coronavirus) negative.
Another study is underway in Hunan province using similar stem cells and the doctors there were quoted as observing similar results. All of the doctors are saying that it’s time to accelerate the stem cell approach in the care of critically ill patients. These are not the same Stem Cells as your Chiropractor or Naturopath advertises; absolutely not, don’t be misled. Per the report from China, the type of cells used in the first patient were isolated from umbilical cords and then grown in the lab. These cells in China were confirmed as highly viable and functional as this was tissue taken from the OB Ward directly into the lab to be isolated and grown. It was not the non-viable tissue being sold and promoted as umbilical cord-derived “stem cells” here in the US. Those Chiropractic products, based on the research now from many labs, actually contain dead and non-functional stem cells.
How do the Stem Cells work in the face of a Coronavirus infection? What often kills people with the flu is the massive inflammatory reaction in the lungs. This causes swelling and reduces the ability of the lungs to oxygenate tissues. Living stem cells reduce and eliminate inflammation. In addition, stem cells have been shown to be antibacterial and anti-viral. For those who meet the inclusion criteria allowing participation in our FDA Approved Personalized Stem Cell Trial for knee arthritis, there is an option for cell storage. Not only will we use your Adipose Derived Stem cells now for treatment of an arthritic knee, PSC is offering a storage option for future use of those stem cells for anyone of a number of inflammatory conditions.
To learn more, visit my website at www.sheinkopmd.com. The Personalized Stem Cell website is www.personalizedstemcells.com. To schedule an office visit call (312) 475-1893. For those wherein I conclude an arthritic affliction is better managed by bone marrow concentrate containing stem cells, we are now offering a storage option as well.
Call to Learn More
Tags: coronavirus infections, COVID-19, stem cells to treat coronavirus, treating coronavirus
