Regenerative medicine harnesses the power of the body's own cells and cell by-products to facilitate healing. We call it regenerative medicine because we utilize the animals own resources to regenerate the original tissue rather than allow it to scar. These therapies will not be rejected by the patients immune system and also will not drug test for competitions. Tissues such as bone, tendon, ligaments, and cartilage can definitely benefit from regenerative medicine.
We are proud to be the first equine hospital in the nation certified for ACT Now Autologous Cellular Therapy. The ACT Now therapies use the most up to date processing methods that we can complete in our own lab, allowing the treatment to begin at the same appointment as the collection. The ACT Now therapies included in Conley and Koontz Equine Hospital's arsenal of regenerative resources are:ACT-PRP, Pro-StrideTM ACT-Protein Solution, and ACT-Cell Concentration.
ACT-PRP: The platelets that are circulating throughout your own horses blood are responsible for initiating the clotting and healing process. When these platelets become activated they release various anti-inflammatory substances and growth factors that are responsible for the beginning of healing. These anti-inflammatory substances and growth factors recruit cells that are responsible for healing and new blood vessel formation to the site of injury. ACT-PRP TM is a platelet rich plasma product that is prepared by concentrating your own horses blood through a special procedure that results in a plasma that is rich in activated platelets and devoid of other cells that result in inflammation. Injections of ACT-PRPTM into the region of the injury have been shown to accelerate and enhance the healing process using the body's own mechanisms.
Pro-Stride: Pro-StrideTM is a therapy which uses interleukin-1 receptor antagonist protein collected from the animals own blood. The product is used to counteract inflammatory proteins which are present in joints with osteoarthritis or degenerative joint disease. A simplified description of this product is like describing kryptonite to superman. The Pro-StrideTM product is the kryptonite and the inflammatory protein is superman. The Pro-StrideTM makes the inflammatory protein ineffective in causing inflammation and calms the joint. The process involves collecting blood from the patient and processing it into one serum based injection. Pro-StrideTM processing is done in our own lab in less than 1 hour, avoiding the shipping and incubation delays of previous irap therapies.
ACT-Cell Concentration: If you have watched the news in the last 5-8 years or listened to NPR you have probably heard of stem cells. Stem Cell therapy has been one of the most controversial therapies we have seen in the United States for many years.
ACT are progenitor cells that are extraordinary because they can grow and multiply many times. This is different than other cells in the body because they have already differentiated and are end-stage cells. These stem cells have the ability to differentiate into multiple tissue types like cartilage, bone, or tendon. We collect these stem cells from adipose (fat) tissue or bone marrow The tissue is collected and then processed at our in-house laboratory to be prepared for injection. Typically these cells can be cultured and stored for future use if the horse suffers additional injuries.
Treatment: If your horse has sustained an injury to a tendon, ligament, bone, or cartilage; regenerative medicine may very well give your horse the best opportunity for complete resolution of the injury and return to athletic function. The ACT Now therapies minimize wait time. With treatments available at the same appointment as diagnosis, your horse can be on the road to recovery with minimum wait time. To view a case study that includes the use of stem cells, click Ranger.
Ryan Rothenbuhler DVM, MS
Diplomate ACVS
Head of Surgery
Conley and Koontz Equine Hospital