American Medical Society for Sports Medicine
For Immediate Release Apr 28, 2018

Dr. Lisa Fortier Covers Advances in Cell Therapy for OA and Cartilage Disorders

Lake Buena Vista, FL – Lisa Fortier, DVM, PhD, DACVS, presented her research on "Advances in cell therapy for OA and cartilage disorders" at the 27th Annual Meeting of the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine.

Dr. Fortier, who serves as James Law Professor of Surgery and Director of Cornell Equine Park discussed her current research on mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) in horses.

“Bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells work to prevent progression of osteoarthritis in ways that we haven't previously understood,” Dr. Fortier said. “Not only do they preserve the structural and molecular integrity of cartilage, but they prevent sclerosis of the underlying subchondral bone and thereby protect the overlying articular cartilage from mechanical injury.”

The results gave some insight into several aspects of stem cell use. The research showed stem cells from bone marrow concentrates have a greater cartilage fill than the fat aspirates. Also, differences between stem cells and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) were found. Stem cells have much different cell markers than PRP.

Stem cells were also shown to reduce the amount of sclerosis after arthoroscopy and increase the amount of synovial membrane.

“It is not clear if these results would be replicated with other tissue sources of stem cells, nor is the treatment regime (number of injections, stem cell dose) know,” Dr. Fortier said. “But knowing what outcome variables we should be measuring should help to answer these questions in future studies.”

About the AMSSM Annual Meeting: The 2018 conference brings more than 2,000 sports medicine physicians together from throughout the United States and around the world. The meeting theme is REACH: Reaching Up, Reaching Out, Reaching Ahead and explores the many ways AMSSM is leading the charge and shaping the future of sports medicine.

About the AMSSM: AMSSM is a multi-disciplinary organization of more than 3,600 sports medicine physicians dedicated to education, research, advocacy and the care of athletes of all ages. The majority of AMSSM members are primary care physicians with fellowship training and added qualification in sports medicine who then combine their practice of sports medicine with their primary specialty. AMSSM includes members who specialize solely in non-surgical sports medicine and serve as team physicians at the youth level, NCAA, NFL, MLB, NBA, WNBA, MLS and NHL, as well as with Olympic and Paralympic teams. By nature of their training and experience, sports medicine physicians are ideally suited to provide comprehensive medical care for athletes, sports teams or active individuals who are simply looking to maintain a healthy lifestyle. www.amssm.org