Regenerative Options for Hip Labrum Tear

By: James Leiber, DO

Hip Labrum Tears
Think of the hip labrum as a gasket that surrounds the rim of the socket where the hip bone attaches. Its job is to assist hip stability, and when injured or torn, it can cause pain and catching of the joint. If you’ve failed or neglected conservative treatment such as physical therapy and rest, a common treatment for hip labral tears is arthroscopic surgery to remove the torn labrum.

Arthroscopic surgery for a labral tear consists of cutting out the damaged tissue because it can rarely be sewn back together. This method has generated an entire multibillion-dollar surgical industry in which there is very little hard evidence of success. Removing the labrum does not ultimately fix the problem long-term. In fact, it may cause more stability issues and increased susceptibility to arthritis over time.

Luckily, there are alternatives to invasive surgery. If your primary complaint is pain and you have no “locking” symptoms, you should consider forgoing surgery and looking into Regenexx procedures, depending on the degree of your problem. If arthritis is already present in the hip, then Regenexx Bone Marrow Concentrate (BMC) procedures, which use stem cells from your own body to help repair damaged tissue, could help in treating both the labral injury and your arthritis.

Precise Injections or Interventional Orthopedics
Not all injection skills are created equal. Physicians should be highly skilled in image-guided injection procedures, requiring intensive training. Many providers offering platelet-rich plasma (PRP) or Bone Marrow Concentrate are injecting low-quality products, utilizing low-level injection skills.

How the product is made, and precision placement, matter. Most of what your family doctor, a physician extender at a chiropractic office, or even an orthopedic surgeon knows how to do are simple injections. Even worse, some providers are injecting these products in an IV, or randomly somewhere near the vicinity of the problem, and telling patients that “stem cells know where to go.” Our advice is to run the other way.

Another thing to avoid is the fraudulent advertising and use of birth tissue products derived from umbilical, placental, and amniotic tissue. Although these tissues have living stem cells at the time of birth, the products sold are devoid of living stem cells, as documented by multiple independent laboratories. Not to mention the fact that the FDA requires that these products be devoid of living cells, otherwise they’d need to go through FDA-approved clinical trials (which no manufacturer has done).

The same can be said about stem cells derived from fat tissue. Again, the FDA considers this to be a drug and it is currently not allowed in the U.S. Right now, there are opportunists who are negatively impacting the reputation of a valid and successful medical approach, done by highly skilled and compassionate physicians, in order to make a buck.

The interventional orthopedic procedures we are discussing here are quite different. Regenexx has the largest database registry in the world, tracking patients for safety and outcomes utilizing their protocols. We understand who is and isn’t a candidate.

A Hip Labrum Tear Regenexx Procedure with Ultrasound and Fluoroscopy
Ninety-nine percent of all the injections that you could get in your hip tomorrow are not specifically targeting tears in your hip labrum. Precise hip labrum BMC procedures have not traditionally been taught to physicians or other providers. Regenexx physicians have all been trained through the Interventional Orthopedics Foundation (IOF).

By using real-time X-ray imaging and ultrasound, we can ensure that the BMC is placed in the exact location of the tear.

In conclusion, you may not need surgery to treat a labral tear. By using repair cells from your own body, precisely injected into damaged tissue under the direction of a skilled physician, you can experience similar results and relief from pain.

James Leiber, D.O. – is the founder and medical director of Regenexx Tampa Bay. He is a former officer, physician, and educator in the Air Force, including personal physician to the vice president and president at the White House. He is triple board certified in Neuromusculoskeletal Medicine (AOBNMM), Pain Medicine (CAQPM), and Family Medicine (ABFM), as well registered in Musculoskeletal Sonography (RMSK).

In 2012, Dr. Leiber was the first to offer Regenexx in Florida and began offering the nation’s most advanced non-surgical stem cell and platelet treatments (PRP) for injuries and arthritis under image guidance utilizing ultrasound and fluoroscopy (X-ray).

Ronald Torrance II, D.O., FAOASM – Fellowed in Sports Medicine and co-author of Exercise 2.0 for Regenexx and author of the 2018 best paper of the year on The Concussed Athlete. Dr. Torrance has achieved semi-professional ranking as a beach volleyball player and trains as a competitive CrossFit athlete. Dr. Torrance spends time with his wife and two children as well as lecturing and instructing throughout the country.

Ignatios Papas, D.O. – Specializes in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. He is a research collaborator with Columbia and Cornell University on multiple projects. Dr. Papas enjoys spending time with his wife and son, playing soccer, practicing guitar, and listening to historical podcasts.

Lisa Valastro, D.O. – Specializes in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation with a focus on regenerative medicine via orthobiologics. She received her medical degree from Lake Erie College of Osteopathic Medicine in Erie, Pennsylvania, and her Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation training at Albany Medical Center in Albany, New York. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking, kayaking, weight lifting and volleyball.

Regenexx at New Regeneration
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