Autologous Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Therapy for Chronic Achilles Tendinopathy: Report of Three Cases.

The treatment of chronic Achilles tendinopathy (CAT) remains challenging. We report three cases of CAT treated with autologous peripheral blood stem cells (PBSCs), following principles developed for chondrogenesis of the knee joint. Outcome measurement with a minimum of one and a half years follow-up showed significant improvement of Victorian Institute of Sport Assessment-Achilles questionnaire (VISA-A) scores, with reduction of tendon thickness and inflammation on MRI scan.

Chondrogenesis with Autologous Peripheral Blood Stem Cells for End-Stage Ankle Arthritis: Report of Three Cases.

End-stage ankle arthritis represents an "unmet medical need", awaiting an appropriate time for joint arthroplasty or arthrodesis. We report three cases of end-stage ankle arthritis treated along the principles developed for chondrogenesis of the knee joint with autologous peripheral blood stem cells, resulting in reversal of the ankle arthritis. The improvement in clinical outcome measure scores (Ankle Osteoarthritis Scale total score) with a minimum two-year follow-up were comparable to total ankle replacement (TAR), arthroscopic ankle arthrodesis (AAA) and open ankle arthrodesis (OAA).

Osteochondrogenesis with Autologous Peripheral Blood Stem Cells for Osteochondral Lesions of the Talus: Report of Five Cases.

Osteochondral lesions of the talus (OLTs) may progress to ankle arthritis needing ankle arthroplasty or arthrodesis. We report five cases of OLTs treated along the principles developed for chondrogenesis of the knee joint with autologous peripheral blood stem cells (PBSCs), resulting in repair and regeneration of the bone and cartilage components. Improvement in Ankle Osteoarthritis Scale (AOS) scores with minimum two years follow-up showed statistical significance (p < 0.05).

Osteochondrogenesis with Autologous Peripheral Blood Stem Cells for Osteochondral Lesions of the Talus: Report of Five Cases

@#Osteochondral lesions of the talus (OLTs) may progress to ankle arthritis needing ankle arthroplasty or arthrodesis. We report five cases of OLTs treated along the principles developed for chondrogenesis of the knee joint with autologous peripheral blood stem cells (PBSCs), resulting in repair and regeneration of the bone and cartilage components. Improvement in Ankle Osteoarthritis Scale (AOS) scores with minimum two years follow-up showed statistical significance (p < 0.05).

Autologous Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Therapy for Chronic Achilles Tendinopathy: Report of Three Cases

@#The treatment of chronic Achilles tendinopathy (CAT) remains challenging. We report three cases of CAT treated with autologous peripheral blood stem cells (PBSCs), following principles developed for chondrogenesis of the knee joint. Outcome measurement with a minimum of one and a half years follow-up showed significant improvement of Victorian Institute of Sport Assessment-Achilles questionnaire (VISA-A) scores, with reduction of tendon thickness and inflammation on MRI scan.

Chondrogenesis with Autologous Peripheral Blood Stem Cells for End-Stage Ankle Arthritis: Report of Three Cases

@#End-stage ankle arthritis represents an “unmet medical need”, awaiting an appropriate time for joint arthroplasty or arthrodesis. We report three cases of end-stage ankle arthritis treated along the principles developed for chondrogenesis of the knee joint with autologous peripheral blood stem cells, resulting in reversal of the ankle arthritis. The improvement in clinical outcome measure scores (Ankle Osteoarthritis Scale total score) with a minimum two-year follow-up were comparable to total ankle replacement (TAR), arthroscopic ankle arthrodesis (AAA) and open ankle arthrodesis (OAA).

Musculoskeletal injuries among Malaysian badminton players.

INTRODUCTION: The purpose of this study was to investigate the pattern of musculoskeletal injuries sustained by Malaysian badminton players. METHODS: This is a retrospective case notes review of all badminton players who attended the National Sports Institute (NSI) Clinic, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and were diagnosed with musculoskeletal injuries. RESULT: In a two and a half year period, from January 2005 to June 2007, 469 musculoskeletal injuries were diagnosed among badminton players at the NSI Clinic. The mean age of the players who attended the clinic was 19.2 (range 13-52) years. Approximately 60 percent of the injuries occurred in players younger than 20 years of age. The majority of injuries (91.5 percent) were categorised as mild overuse injury and mostly involved the knee. CONCLUSION: The majority of the injuries sustained by badminton players in this study were due to overuse, primarily in the knee. The majority of the injuries were diagnosed in younger players and occurred during training/practice sessions. There was no difference in terms of incidence and types of injuries between the genders.

Radiological classification of meniscocapsular tears of the anterolateral portion of the lateral meniscus of the knee.

In an arthroscopic-MRI correlation study of acute injuries to the knee it was found that anterolateral meniscocapsular separations of the lateral aspect of the knee were missed on MRI reporting. Eighty sports-related injuries of the knee were seen by experienced orthopaedic surgeons at the University of Malaya Medical Centre and at the National Sports Centre, Malaysia from January 1996 to July 1997. Fifty of the patients were suspected to have meniscal tears that were either lateral or medial on clinical examination and they were sent for MRI. Many of these patients were tertiary referrals. Magnetic resonance imaging examinations in 27 of the 50 patients were reported as not showing any intrasubstance or obvious meniscocapsular tears, but arthroscopy performed on them revealed anterolateral meniscocapsular tears of the lateral meniscus of varying degrees in nine of these patients. In retrospect the tears could be seen on MRI, and a pattern to the tears was noted and classified as follows. Type 0, normal; type 1, torn inferior or superior meniscocapsular attachment; type 2, both meniscofemoral and meniscotibial ligaments torn but with minimal separation of meniscus and capsule by fluid or synovitis; and type 3, marked separation of meniscus and capsule by fluid (> 3 mm). Ten patients who did not undergo arthroscopy for various personal and financial reasons underwent MRI which showed type 1 and type 2 tears, and were treated conservatively. These patients were all asymptomatic after 4-6 weeks with regard to clinical signs, suggesting a lateral meniscal tear. Magnetic resonance imaging therefore does reveal minor degrees of meniscocapsular tears anterolaterally when one understands the normal anatomy in this region.

Screening for in vitro anti-tumor-promoting activities of edible plants from Indonesia.

A total of 135 methanol extracts from 48 plant families (107 species) of edible Indonesian plants were screened for their in vitro anti-tumor-promoting activities using the tumor promoter 12-O-hexadecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (HPA)induced Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) activation test in Raji cells. Examined at a concentration of 200 mg/ml, 71% of the extracts inhibited EBV activation by 30% or more. The rate is comparable to the rate observed in our previous tests of edible Thai (60%) plants and much higher than the rate (26%) observed with Japanese plants. In particular, the plant families Zingiberaceae (13/13 active) and Umbelliferae (7/8 active) are suggested to be desirable sources of effective cancer-preventive agents because of the strikingly high frequency of inhibitory activity. Thus, a high potential of edible Southeast Asian plants for cancer chemoprevention is indicated.