Hip Replacement – The Stem Cell Debate
The issue of stem cell research creates much debate
amongst scientists and politicians and new research has shown hip
replacement procedures may benefit greatly from stem cell
growth.
The controversy surrounding stem cell research has essentially
split scientific camps, with some believing it is ethically
problematic and could lead to reproductive cloning but others
firmly believe that it can be use to fight disease and infirmity.
According to a report in the Telegraph, stem cell research may
prove extremely beneficial in hip replacement procedures in terms
of strengthening the joints of hip replacement patients.
Hip Replacement – The Importance of Science
According to the report in the Telegraph, pioneering stem cell
research could drastically strengthen the crumbling joints of
patients who require a second hip replacement. British scientists
have devised a form of stem cell manipulation that they believe
will have great success in ensuring successful revisions on a hip
replacement. Hip replacements tend to last between 15 and 20 years
and, due to an increase in life expectancy, the number of hip
replacement revisions that are required each year is around the
10,000 mark. According to the report in the Telegraph, Prof Gordon
Blunn, the doctor behind the stem cell research in hip replacements
believes that stem cells can be utilised to improve the calibre of
the bone chips that are used in a hip replacement operation and it
is hoped that stem cells would provide a more effective way of
tackling bone damage.
Hip Replacement – Preliminary Findings
The benefits of stem cells in relation to a hip replacement
operation obviously still requires further analysis but, according
to the report in the Telegraph, the doctor in charge of the
research, Prof Blunn, says that his preliminary experiments into
the process have found that bone formation can be significantly
boosted by as much as 75% if stem cells from the patient are
utilised during the hip replacement procedure.