[Circular] Taking a Swing at Revolutionary Joint Treatments
A revolutionary new stem cell treatment opens up a new horizon for the treatment of knee injuries, giving renewed hope to golfers and athletes alike.
In June 2008, Tiger Woods won the U.S. Open at Torrey Pines with just one good leg. Months earlier, Woods had undergone knee surgery for the damaged cartilage in his left knee. Immediately after the U.S. Open, he had the most serious knee injury of his career to date – a torn ACL or anterior cruciate ligament – which has been known to sideline many athletes for long periods of time.
In fact, knee injuries are a fairly common problem among golfers. In a normal golf swing, a tremendous amount of force or pressure is placed on the knees due to the amount of rotation required throughout the body.
“The golf swing is a complex series of processes that includes the upswing, downswing and follow-through phases. Each of these phases places a different set of physical stress or pressure on the muscles and knee joints, which can cause a variety of injuries,” explains Australian professional golfer, Stewart Ginn.
For many professional and even amateur golfers, it is only a matter of time before their joints are subjected to deterioration or damage from hours on the green. But with various revolutionary new treatments available today, traditional surgery may no longer be the only option to treat knee injuries.
Although traditional as well as minimal invasive surgeries remain the mainstay of treatment in the more severe injuries of the knee, such as severe ligament or cartilage injury and severe degeneration of the knee, many of the less severe injuries of the knee can be treated non surgically by physiotherapy, bracing, injection or even simple act of activity modification.
Customised treatment is the answer
Providing holistic and cutting-edge treatment for the knee and other musculo-skeletal injuries, Kuala Lumpur Sports Medicine Centre (KLSMC) has made waves and shed new light on the treatment of knee injuries, such as those experienced by golfers.
“The centre takes pride in the ability to tailor its treatment regime for individual patients, with the understanding that every patient is unique and no two patients’ conditions are the same. This enables patients to resume their active lifestyle with as minimal disruption as possible,” says Dr Tay Yong Guan, Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon at KLSMC who sub-specialises in knee injuries including adult knee joint replacement.
An avid golfer himself, Dr Tay highlights that tailored treatment care is of the essence when athletes in general aim to return to their sport of choice – and that the success of KLSMC only remains as such due to the fact that each patient is diagnosed and treated based on their specific form, life and predispositions.
Exploring New Treatment Possibilities
As KLSMC continues to lead from the front when it comes to researching new frontiers in the medical world the areas of expertise within the one stop medical centre continues to grow. The research unit of KLSMC has been looking into exploiting the body’s natural healing properties in order to provide even better treatment options for its patients.
The degeneration or damage of the articular cartilage (the white, smooth tissue that covers the surface of bones and joints) can cause symptoms of pain, swelling and giving-away of the joint.
While our bodies are capable of regenerating cells to replace lost ones, the articular cartilage is unable to do so effectively because the cartilage layer is an area that lacks blood supply.
Thus, over the last two decades, orthopaedic surgeons have been experimenting with various techniques to initiate cartilage regeneration in patients, in efforts to overcome this biological limitation.
A revolutionary new stem cell treatment for cartilage injuries, known as articular cartilage regeneration with stem cells, has opened up a new horizon for the treatment of complex injuries, especially for the knee joint. The method of stem cell therapy exploits the natural healing properties of the patient’s own stem cells, which are harvested from the patient’s blood stream and re-injected into damaged areas after required surgical procedure is performed.
These cells are also cryo-preserved and stored for future treatment. The science, surgical technique, harvesting and storage of the stem cells, as well as the post-operative rehabilitation programme that encompasses this innovative technology have been established to enable quality regeneration and repair.
This pioneering stem cell treatment has received international recognition, and is a patented technology. The potential of stem cell therapy is also being extended beyond the knee to other parts of the musculo-skeletal system, including bones and soft tissues.
Cutting-edge and Patient-friendly
As one of the only hospitals with its own research and development unit dedicated to finding new and more effective ways to solve musculo-skeletal disorders, KLSMC is today at the forefront of sports medicine and articular cartilage regeneration.
Being the vanguard of sports medicine practice in the country, KLSMC provides an integrated service which includes consultation, physiotherapy and surgery. Its state of the art facilities extend to medical imaging, surgical wards, pharmacy, physiotherapy and a hydrotherapy pool.
“KLSMC truly believes that effective treatment goes beyond the doctor-patient relationships and extends into every aspect of treatment. As such, the centre invests in some of the leading facilities and equipment available today in order to provide truly enhanced service to patients” explains Dr Tay.
The team of consultant orthopaedic surgeons, who are also the founders of KLSMC, are well-versed in treating patients with complex problems. Areas of specialisation include knee, shoulder, hand and microsurgery, foot and ankle, hip and spine.
There is also an in-house family physician clinic that offers a wide range of primary care for children and adults. One of KLSMC’s philosophies is keeping patients happy and comfortable, as “happy patients heal faster”.
Its revolutionary new treatment approaches and technologies continue to raise the bar in sports medicine and give fresh hope to avid golfers and athletes alike.
