Advances and controversies in stem cell therapies and tissue engineering strategies applicable to trauma and orthopaedic surgery

摘要

Stem cell research relevant to many areas of medicine has vastly expanded in recent years. There have been some particularly significant advances applicable to Trauma and Orthopaedic surgery. Regenerative surgical applications are in demand as they hold the potential to enable the ageing patient to remain physically active [1]. In addition to this, stem cell therapy and tissue engineering are likely to play an increasingly more important role in sports medicine to treat predominantly younger highly active patients who experience injury. Advances in stem cell and tissue engineering applications may lead to a paradigm shift in musculoskeletal surgery from fixation and replacement of damaged or lost tissue with prostheses or grafts, towards regeneration [2, 3]. This special issue discusses advances in stem cell and tissue engineering research into a range of muscu-loskeletal pathologies. As bone regeneration had been considered extensively in previous recent issues of this journal [4, 5]; this issue focuses more on other key areas of Trauma and Orthopaedic surgery. The topics discussed include knee ligament, articular cartilage and meniscal injuries, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, paediatric physeal injuries, spinal pathologies and rotator cuff disease. Areas of controversy are considered.