[ad_1]
Published:
From: TT
Published:
Photo: Lund University
X-rays from the study show a healthy rat femur compared to a fracture treated without the new method.
The Lund researchers have succeeded in developing a possible new method for healing bone fractures. By combining an artificial ceramic bone substitute with a cocktail of other medications, they have managed to heal severe fractures in rats.
In the study, which is published in the scientific journal Science Advances, researchers from Sweden and Germany have managed to cure very serious bone fractures in rats.
– We remove almost 30 percent of the length of the femur. It’s a defect that wouldn’t heal on its own, says Deepak Raina, an orthopedic researcher and lead author of the study.
After twelve weeks, the fracture had healed, after which the researchers measured the properties of the bone.
– The results show that extensive bone defects can be cured without complications, says Deepak Raina.
Unique combination
The method consists of combining a bone protein, a simulation molecule that leads to bone formation, with the drug bisphosphonate, which counteracts the degradation of bone cells. All this packaged in an artificial ceramic biomaterial, previously developed in Lund.
– The bone protein we use has previously been shown to have negative effects by activating cells that degrade bones. We can counteract this with bisphosphonates, and by controlling the release, we have managed to greatly reduce the dose of bone protein, says Deepak Raina.
Instead of amputation
The researchers believe that the method can be very useful in treating people with bone diseases and implants, for example, to keep screws in place in fragile bones. But especially in severe bone fractures that have previously been difficult for the body to heal on its own.
– It can be open fractures after really serious accidents, where the bone membranes and muscles are torn. It can also be infections or tumors where you need to have surgery to remove the diseased bone. Today, a bone graft is often performed in such cases. In some cases, you are forced to amputate, says Magnus Tägil, professor of orthopedics at Lund University and a co-author of the study.
The injectable cocktail consists of three components that are already approved for clinical use.
– This leads us to believe that the method may soon be useful in a clinical setting, says Magnus Tägil.
Published:
Published:
