Stem Cell Therapy Specialist

What is stem cell therapy?

Stem cell therapy harnesses the healing power of your body to repair damaged tissue and bone. Dr. Mukalel offers regenerative therapies using platelet-rich plasma (PRP) or stem cells from bone marrow aspirate concentrate (BMAC) rather than using harvested cells from the placenta.

PRP is found naturally in your blood and stimulates your body to regenerate new, healthy cells to replace what’s damaged by a disease or an injury. PRP also provides an intense inflammatory cascade that promotes increased blood flow and tissue repair. Stem cells have the unique ability to regenerate into any type of cell, including muscle, nerve, and brain cells. 

Dr. Mukalel typically injects high concentrations of PRP to repair damaged tissue and reduce inflammation. He reserves BMAC for treating joint structures in your hips, knees, and shoulders, where tissue loss is considerable. He can also use BMAC therapy to treat chronic, discogenic pain from damaged lumbar discs in the spine. Candidates for disc BMAC have disc pain and mild to moderate disc degeneration and height loss. 

What can I expect during stem cell therapy?

To determine if you’re a candidate for stem cell therapy, Dr. Mukalel uses ultrasound technology to evaluate the type of damage in your joints or soft tissues. He injects a small quantity of a local anesthetic to determine if it lessens your pain and if you’re a good candidate for regenerative therapy.

To treat mild to moderate tissue damage with PRP, Dr. Mukalel draws a sample of your blood and places it in a centrifuge that quickly spins to separate PRP from other blood materials. The high concentration of PRP is what Dr. Mukalel injects into the injured area.

For BMAC therapy, Dr. Mukalel must harvest a sample of bone marrow from your hip or pelvis during a separate procedure. Once he prepares the sample, he injects the BMAC into the damaged joint. Dr. Mukalel also always gives a no-cost PRP booster 6-8 weeks after the BMAC injection.

To ensure the proper placement of each injection, Dr. Mukalel uses the guidance of ultrasound technology. He is skilled in using ultrasounds to confirm the severity of damage in the area and to direct injections into nerves, ligaments, and joints with a high level of accuracy. 

What options are available if stem cell therapy isn’t right for me?

If you aren’t a candidate for regenerative therapy or can’t afford it, Dr. Mukalel may recommend prolotherapy. Prolotherapy is also an alternative if you don’t want to take steroids to treat chronic inflammation. 

Prolotherapy follows the concept of picking a scab on a scar that hasn’t fully healed. By removing the scab, it prompts your body to start healing itself and send more blood to the area. Prolotherapy involves multi-needle injections of sugar water, a local anesthetic, and vitamin B12 under ultrasound guidance. These injections help your body regenerate damaged tissues. 

Dr. Mukalel spends a lot of time explaining each procedure and your options for treatment. He also follows up with you to monitor the effectiveness of your treatment. 

To find out if you’re a candidate for stem cell therapy, call the office of Jessen Mukalel, MD, or request an appointment online today.