A common question we receive from our patient about stem cell therapy is, “How long will recovery take?” or “When will I start feeling better?” As with many aspects of healthcare, the answer isn’t one-size-fits-all, especially in orthopedics as everyone is created differently and have different routines and diets which can affect stem cell treatment recovery time. However, the subject of diet and exercise, we will talk in a different stem cell article.
The Recovery Timeline
Many people have misconceptions about post stem cell therapy recovery times for orthopedic injuries. Patients often expect quick fixes and immediate recovery. However, orthopedic recovery typically involves a minimum of 1 months of healing post-surgery or you start feeling better. This timeframe only accounts for healing, not a return to full strength, flexibility, or activity. For example, it usually takes professional athletes around six months to return to play after an ACL surgery, following a rotator cuff repair.
Triggering Healing
What can stem cells promote natural healing? This is where regenerative medicine, including PRP (platelet-rich plasma) and stem cell therapy, comes into play. These stem cell therapy leverage the use your body’s inherent healing ability itself. For instance, when you suffer a cut, your blood’s components help clean the wound and stimulate healing. Similarly, PRP involves drawing your blood, processing it to separate healing properties, and injecting it back into areas of inflammation or chronic pain. Whereas, UC-MSC Stem cell therapy are umbilical cord derived stem cells extracted from a donor, and are injected into the patient.
What are Stem cells?
Stem cells are versatile and can differentiate into various tissue types—bone, muscle, or cartilage. By concentrating these stem cells from your body and injecting them into damaged areas, we can effectively create new cells that targets the root causes of pain and dysfunction.
How Long Until You Feel Better after Stem Cell Therapy?
Most patients begin to notice improvements within six-nine weeks post-procedure. The regenerative process continues during which time many experiences ongoing benefits.
A key advantage of stem cell therapy is that it doesn’t require extensive downtime. Patients typically resume normal activities within two to three days after recovering from small swellings post stem cell injections and muscle sores, avoiding the lengthy recovery associated with traditional surgeries and the need for in-home assistance or extensive physical therapy. After 1 months, you may resume physical therapies or longer sessions of exercise.
Will Repeat Procedures of Stem Cell Therapy Be Necessary?
Many patients report improvements ranging from 60% to 100%. From the years of research and treating our patients, we’ve rarely needed to repeat a stem cell procedure for the same issue and few cases, our patient come back for a second stem cell therapy after 2 years or 4 years. There is no harm in doing stem cell procedures every year. Everybody and injury is unique. Not all rotator cuff tears are identical, and knee degeneration varies significantly among individuals. However, consider this: if a doctor recommends knee replacement due to severe degeneration but you achieve a 60% reduction in pain with stem cell therapy, isn’t that still a success? Research shows that many individuals who undergo joint replacements continue to experience pain.
Conclusion
In summary, utilizing your body’s natural healing capabilities is often more effective while waiting for surgery or not needing surgery at all. Stem cells offers a promising alternative to regain the quality of life you deserve. For more information on how stem cell therapy can help you, explore the resources we provide.