There is a great orthopedic meeting going on right now in Acapulco, Mexico!
This is the 29th annual AMECRA meeting which is an international meeting focused on arthroscopy and arthroplasty and reconstructive surgery.
The thought leaders in orthopedics and regenerative medicine in Mexico are here and I am looking forward to learning their approaches to helping patients with orthopedic challenges.
Can a stem cell (bone marrow concentrate) injection outperform a PRP injection in the small joints of the hand/wrist?
It's a question I often get asked.....with such a small volume injection is there still a potential benefit of doing BMC over PRP?
Well, this surgeon had PRP before we met 3 years ago and he did feel PRP worked better and lasted longer than steroid. Then we met and he wanted to try BMC. Fast forward 3 years and he has done significantly better ...about 3x longer benefit.... with BMC versus PRP.
I get that this is a case study and a patient testimonial...but it is still true and something to consider when advising patients about the potential outcomes of out orthobiologic options!
A frozen shoulder is simply a shoulder that does not have normal motion. Usually a frozen shoulder is painful, especially when the limits of the range of motion are reached.
The most common reason why this happens is from minor shoulder trauma. Sometimes it can happen after a surgical procedures. And sometimes it can happen without any real history of an injury at all!
At Texas Orthobiologics we have been helping patients with challenging frozen shoulder symptoms for over 25 years. Over that time we have developed more nonsurgical ways, including the use of regenerative medicine techniques in the office, to shorten the impact of frozen shoulders for our patients.
Regenerative medicine and ultrasound use are growing within orthopedics! Last month at the 2025 annual Arthroscopy Association Of North America meeting (AANA) I lectured on regenerative medicine topics, led the MSK ultrasound training course, and had an all around fantastic time connecting with colleagues and spreading the latest evidence based info in our field.
At Texas Orthobiologics we currently specialize in using platelet rich plasma (PRP) and bone marrow concentrate (BMC-stem cells) as our two primary orthobiologics. We also use other non-surgical techniques to benefit our patients and keep them living their best lives without surgery!
Patient Testimonial!
4.5 years after a bone marrow concentrate injection for her knee arthritis! Results vary of course.
This is a nonsurgical option that may not eliminate surgery but for so many of our patients at Texas Orthobiologics this is a great non surgical option that minimizes their arthritis pain for years!
I wish distributors and companies making and selling PRP kits would market their platelet recovery percentage.
Why? Because it is not dependent on the patient's platelet count and is a metric that cannot be manipulated by changing the platelet volume or starting with a high platelet count.....it helps to level the playing field when evaluating PRP kits and protocols.
If you have shoulder pain or a rotator cuff tear, you may not need shoulder surgery~! And we have evidence based regenerative medicine options that mean you don't need steroid shots or long term medications. Our regenerative medicine options include platelet rich plasma injections or stem cell injections made from your own bone marrow. These procedures are done in the office and about 95% of the time it is a single injection!
Regenerative medicine is the perfect solution to help keep people active with as little pain as possible. I always have to remind these warriors in my office that their imaging findings often happen as we age...some arthritis, degenerative rotator cuffs and meniscus and labrum tears.....and that we don't necessarily need to schedule surgery because an xray or MRI shows "something". I think everyone deserves to know that these regenerative medicine treatment options are real and available from thoughtful clinicians.
Have you heard about Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP)? Our last 225 patientsreport a 97% patient satisfaction rating in avoiding surgery with PRP!
It is a regenerative medicine injection made from your own blood in 15 minutes.
PRP can be used to minimize pain, accelerate healing, and improve surgical outcomes.
The most common indication for using PRP is to help patients with knee pain and dysfunction avoid surgery and medications and steroid shots.
What is the response rate for patients with knee arthritis when given a single high dose LP-PRP injection? 80% !!
What is patient satisfaction? 97%!
