Sunday, February 13, 2011

Autologous conditioned plasma launched in India

Autologous conditioned Plasma therapy was introduced in Chennai, Tamilnadu, India this week. The first patient was a middle aged gentleman with lateral epicondylitis of the elbow, commonly known as Tennis elbow. Dr.A.K.Venkatachalam of the Madras Joint Replacement Center launched this treatment in Chennai.
This treatment will hopefully help international cricketers to recover rapidly during the ongoing  ICC Cricket World cup and IPL matches says the surgeon.
Autologous conditioned plasma is a proprietary name for Platelet rich plasma. Platelets are blood cells normally responsible for intiating the blood clotting mechanism when there is an external breach of the small blood vessels. However they also contain several growth factors which are activated when the platelets are outside the blood. These growth factors can stimulate bone, cartilage, tendon, vascular, skin cells to grow. Damaged tissues like tendons, ligaments cartilage can be repaired by a natural process with this therapy.
The common conditions that can be treated by Autologous conditioned plasma ( ACP) are Tennis elbow, patellar tendonitis, achilles tendonitis and early case of knee osteoarthritis.
Orthopaedic sports injuries like hamstring strains, thigh strains, ankle sprains are eminently treatable.
The treatment takes only a few minutes to complete.
The procedure costs only 15,000 rupees and can be done on an outpatient basis.
Madras Joint Replacement Center offers biological treatment for bone and cartilage problems like stem cell therapy for avascular necrosis, non union of bones, cartilage lesions in young age.