Micro-fragmented adipose tissue mesenchymal stem cell therapy is when small amounts of fatty (adipose) tissue are taken from areas of the body, such as the stomach or thighs and used to stimulate healing.
Using a special process, mesenchymal stem cells are extracted from fat tissue and injected into areas of your body that have become damaged through wear and tear, injury, or disease. Adipose tissue therapy can also be used as an additional treatment alongside other orthopaedic procedures to help with bone and tissue healing.
The healing power of fat
Fat plays a number of roles in our body, including how we heal. Studies carried out over many years have explored this healing potential, which was recognised as early as World War 1, when fat was used to speed up the healing of soldiers’ wounds.
Fat as part of a balanced diet is essential for our health and has many benefits alongside providing energy, including cushioning the joints and repairing damaged tissues.
The advantages of using fat to help with healing include:
- There is plenty of fat in the body
- It can be easily ‘harvested’ using a minimally invasive procedure carried out using a local anaesthetic
- Fat contains cells that help to heal damaged tissue
- Research has shown that, no matter how old you are, fat is still able to retain its healing properties
How does it work?
The mesenchymal stem cells that are stored in your own body fat (or adipose tissue) are able to respond to problems in other areas of the body that are causing pain or dysfunction, providing natural ‘tools’ to help with healing. Your mesenchymal stem cells can help to:
- Repair damaged tissue (for example, after an injury or operation)
- Speed up tissue growth and regeneration
- Reduce inflammation, helping tissues to heal more quickly
- Improve blood flow by creating new blood vessels
- Reduce areas of internal or external scarring
Watch our video below to see a procedure.
Micro-fragmented adipose tissue (MFAT/Lipogems®) and mesenchymal stem cells (MSC's) by the ‘father of the MSC’
Professor Caplan is widely regarded as the ‘father’ of the mesenchymal stem cell (MSC). In this video, aimed primarily at healthcare professionals, he explains that MSCs are really ‘natural drug stores’ for sites of tissue damage. Talking enthusiastically about the MFAT process – invented by Professor Tremolada – and the results/clinical outcomes that are being achieved, Professor Caplan explains how the MFAT process enables MSCs, taken from your own fatty tissue, to be injected directly into sites of tissue damage, boosting their local presence and aiding recovery. Professor Caplan is convinced that MSC technology will change the way medicine is practised. A naturally occurring ‘product’ rather than a drug, he describes how MSCs have the entire human geno at their disposal to pick out and heal a problem, as well as additional properties that kill bacteria on contact – a helpful, natural safeguard in any clinical setting. See the video.