6 Year Knee Stem Cell Update: Unstoppable!

This 6 year knee stem cell update pic sent to us from one of Dr. Schultz’s patients at the Centeno Schultz Clinic in Colorado has to be one of my favorites. The expression on Craig’s face says it all! Craig first posted this comment on Facebook:

“100+ days on the snow, still a competitive water skier, all on a knee the orthos wanted to hack off 6 years ago, did I mention the 2 shoulders, one from each sport that the orthos said would never be able to press 5#s. Regularly doing 25s as part of my daily routine. THANK YOU Regenexx”

Dr. Schultz first met with Craig in February of 2011. He presented with a year of right knee pain following a backcountry-skiing fall. He had already had arthroscopic knee surgery and a meniscectomy (read removal of part of the meniscus) in 2004, and a further arthroscopic knee surgery in his right knee in which they removed both cartilage and sections of the meniscus. Dr. Schultz performed a Regenexx-SD knee stem cell procedure on his right knee in 2011. This was a same-day procedure where a bone marrow aspirate was taken in the morning, the patient’s cells were isolated using our proprietary protocol, and then the cells were precisely reinjected into various damaged areas.

In 2016, Craig was back, this time with rotator cuff tears. Dr. Schultz used precise injection with a Regenexx-SD stem cell procedure. This included both the main rotator cuff tendon (supraspinatus) as well as the ligaments that stabilize the shoulder joint. This last part is critical as Craig had an unstable shoulder that went undetected by his orthopedic surgeon. Hence, precisely targeting these lax ligaments was a key part of the procedure.

Craig has this to say about his shoulders:

“What’s really great is the shoulder outcomes. Dr. Schultz didn’t have a lot of hope for the left rotator, big tear, fully retracted. Now completely resolved. Right was worse and it’s coming along nicely.”

The upshot? Patients often ask how durable the outcomes of a same-day stem cell procedure can be. We see a wide variety of responses, but longer-term outcomes, like Craig’s 6 year knee stem cell update, are not uncommon. So we wish Craig many more runs and rounds of weight lifting and hope he never has to feel metal, plastic, or ceramic parts in his body!

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Chris Centeno, MD is a specialist in regenerative medicine and the new field of Interventional Orthopedics. Centeno pioneered orthopedic stem cell procedures in 2005 and is responsible for a large amount of the published research on stem cell use for orthopedic applications. View Profile

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NOTE: This blog post provides general information to help the reader better understand regenerative medicine, musculoskeletal health, and related subjects. All content provided in this blog, website, or any linked materials, including text, graphics, images, patient profiles, outcomes, and information, are not intended and should not be considered or used as a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Please always consult with a professional and certified healthcare provider to discuss if a treatment is right for you.

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