You can develop arthritis in any joint in your body, but arthritis creates more problems in some areas than others. When it comes to the joints in your hand, arthritis can prevent you from performing simple manual tasks easily.
In Las Vegas, Nevada, the team at Carl N. Williams, Jr. M.D. Hand and Plastic Surgery provides relief from basal thumb arthritis, a common form of hand arthritis. You might be surprised to learn that minimally invasive treatment options are available to help you avoid hand surgery.
Arthritis is an inflammatory condition that can develop at any point in your body where two bones meet. Basal thumb arthritis, also commonly called carpometacarpal (CMC) arthritis, develops in the joint at the base of your thumb, where your thumb meets your wrist.
This joint allows your thumb to rotate in all directions and plays a critical role in enabling you to grip items. Arthritis can develop as a result of age-related joint degeneration or due to a previous injury. People with rheumatoid arthritis also have an elevated risk of developing basal thumb arthritis.
Pain is usually the first sign of CMC arthritis. You might also notice swelling or stiffness in your thumb or problems pinching or grasping items. Sometimes the damage is great enough that the joint becomes visibly distorted and may look larger or more bony than normal.
Regenerative medicine is an area of practice that focuses on capturing your body’s innate healing abilities to resolve joint damage or other tissue problems. It’s an exciting field that offers the potential to heal the body without pharmaceutical or surgical intervention.
One area of regenerative medicine is stem cell injections. Your body is composed of trillions of cells, most of which are highly specialized and only work in specific ways. You also have numerous stem cells throughout your body that can replicate into the exact same type of cell or develop into an entirely different type of cell.
Stem cell therapy works by collecting a number of these versatile stem cells and injecting them into areas of the body where tissue repair is needed. Stem cell therapy is especially helpful in addressing joint damage, where lost cartilage creates pain and other problems in a very limited space.
The first step is meeting with Dr. Williams to determine the cause of your symptoms and the degree of joint damage. If you both believe that regenerative medicine offers a solid treatment path for your circumstances, you receive an injection of stem cells directly into the damaged thumb joint(s).
It takes time for your body to create new tissue and for that tissue to begin relieving the pain, stiffness, and other symptoms of arthritis. Be patient as you move through the process, and be sure to follow any instructions Dr. Williams provides.
Within a few weeks, you may begin to notice improvement in how your thumb joint feels and functions. Full results develop after a few months. Depending on the degree of damage in your joint and how well your body responds to regenerative therapies, you may undergo a series of treatments to achieve the best possible results.
If the thought of improving joint pain without medication or surgery appeals to you, the team at Carl N. Williams, Jr. M.D. Hand and Plastic Surgery is happy to sit down with you to discuss how regenerative medicine and stem cell injections might align with your treatment needs and goals.
Schedule an appointment to meet with Dr. Williams and his team. We offer simple online booking, or you’re always welcome to call 702-703-6929 to have our staff help you find a time that works for you.
