PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Papadimitriou, Nikolaos
AU  - Hebelka, Hanna
AU  - Hingert, Daphne
AU  - Baranto, Adad
AU  - Barreto Henriksson, Helena
AU  - Lindahl, Anders
AU  - Brisby, Helena
TI  - Intradiscal Injection of Iron-Labeled Autologous Mesenchymal Stromal Cells in Patients With Chronic Low Back Pain: A Feasibility Study With 2 Years Follow-Up
AID  - 10.14444/8152
DP  - 2021 Dec 01
TA  - International Journal of Spine Surgery
PG  - 1201--1209
VI  - 15
IP  - 6
4099  - https://www.ijssurgery.com/content/15/6/1201.short
4100  - https://www.ijssurgery.com/content/15/6/1201.full
SO  - Int J Spine Surg2021 Dec 01; 15
AB  - Purpose Degeneration of the intervertebral disc is considered to be central in pain pathogenesis in patients suffering from chronic low back pain (LBP). In recent years, the injection of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) into the disc to arrest or reverse the degenerative process has been proposed as an alternative therapy. The aim of the present study was to investigate the feasibility of using iron-labeled MSCs for intradiscal injection in patients with long-standing LBP.Methods Ten patients (7 men, 3 women, mean age 40 years, range 26–53) with chronic LBP and confirmed disc degeneration on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were recruited from the waiting list for planned surgery. Injection of autologous, expanded, and iron-labeled bone marrow–derived MSCs (BM-MSCs) into 1 or 2 disc levels was undertaken. Follow-up consisted of monitoring of adverse events, regular MRI examinations, and collection of patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) for a minimum of 2 years.Results No complications could be detected, neither clinically nor on MRI. No statistically significant improvement was seen for PROMs on a group level up to 2 years postinjection. Three of 10 patients opted to proceed with the initially planned surgery within the first year and 2 more within 3 years postinjection.Conclusion Results from this pilot cohort study show that injection of autologous expanded iron-labeled BM-MSCs is a safe procedure, in accordance with the existing body of evidence. The clinical result warrants further larger studies.Level of Evidence 4 for therapeutic studies.