The healing powers of the body’s ‘spare’ fat are now being harnessed to treat painful joints at pioneering UK Regenerative Medicine Clinics in London and now Windsor. You can check my blog for more information.
Top Regenerative Medicine Doctor and former first team doctor to Chelsea football club and currently Medical Advisor to the National Basketball Association (NBA), Dr Ralph Rogers, was the first person in the UK to perform these Lipogems procedures. Dr Rogers was originally trained in Milan, Italy, by Lipogems inventor Dr Carlo Tremolada and is one of only two specialists offering this service in the UK.
The minimally invasive treatment which is carried out under local anaesthetic and takes less than one hour, gently sucks fatty tissue from the patients stomach area or ‘love handles’, ‘cleans it’ and uses it to treat the painful joint.
With more than 8 million people in the UK seeking treatment for osteoarthritis (wear and tear in the joint cartilage) Lipogems treatments may herald the end of some invasive surgery procedures such as knee replacements.
Over the years fat has received a bad rap but its healing powers were first used more than 100 years ago to treat the wounds of First World War soldiers. Since then, researchers have confirmed that fat has truly unique healing properties.
Although initially thought to be incapable of movement, research has shown that fat cells will naturally propel themselves towards an injury where they will remove damaged tissue and ‘plug’ the wound until new cells can be generated.
Fat also contains up to 500 times more supportive and reparative cells when compared to similar tissue. These cells help to promote a healing environment which doesn’t deteriorate with age, making fat an ideal tissue for use in regenerative medicine.
Normally osteoarthritis and other joint problems are treated with anti-inflammatory drugs or steroid injections. However, these can have side effects and sometimes limited results. Invasive surgery is unusually a last resort and recovery times can be long and painful.
Lipogems is a natural and painless procedure with minimal or no side effects and patients can be back to work in days.
For more than 9 years, David Lyddiatt received numerous steroid injections and finally keyhole surgery. Despite this, the 59 year old builder from East London was left struggling to get to work and suffered constant pain. Driving up to 5 hours a day and then working a further 8 took its toll and David finally had to seriously think about giving up his job.
‘When I saw Dr Rogers he asked me to crouch down as far as I could go which was only a few inches. Within ten minutes of the Lipogems procedure I was able to crouch all the way to the floor. It’s been 3 years since the treatment, and it’s been totally life altering. I’m 100% fitter and no longer have to think about giving up work. Lipogems has given me a new lease of life. It’s been so good; I have even had further treatments in my shoulder.’
Dr Rogers who has already started treating patients in his second clinic in Windsor says ‘It gives me great satisfaction and pleasure to see patients finally ‘getting their lives back’ after years of pain. Lipogems is such a short and simple procedure but it can have a huge effect on a patient’s quality of life. Seeing them finally return to work, sports and hobbies pain free is extremely rewarding.’
For more information please visit: www.rrmg.com
