"INTRODUCTION: Back pain is one of the leading causes of disability, with an estimated 540 million sufferers worldwide. Degeneration of the intervertebral discs (IVDs) is implicated in 40% of cases; however, treatment remains limited and regenerative therapies are becoming essential. 3D bioprinting provides a powerful tool to create biomimetic tissue analogues with properties closely matched...
"Despite exciting advances in regenerative medicine, cell-based strategies for treating degenerative disc disease remain in their infancy. After demonstrating safety and efficacy in animal studies, many of these therapies enter a critical period between preclinical validation and clinical evaluation, where they do not appear to work to the same extent in humans. It is commonly believed that...
"Introduction. Intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration is one of the main cause of low back pain (LBP), affecting over 600 million individuals worldwide. Mechanisms associated with the degeneration remain poorly characterized, in part due to the lack of adequate IVD models. Reproducing in vitro the complex structure of an IVD, with its gelatinous core Nucleus Pulposus (NP) surrounded by the...
"Lower back pain due to intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration is a major health problem and often starts in the centre of the IVD, called the nucleus pulposus (NP). NP cells are considered potential candidates for cell-based therapies to induce regeneration of the IVD. However, as the availability of NP cells is limited, extensive in vitro expansion is needed prior to transplantation which...
"INTRODUCTION
Lower back pain affects 80 % of adults and has estimated costs up to 1 – 2 % of GDP1,2. Current surgical treatments include spinal fusion, but outcomes are poor with reoperation required in 20% of patients3. An emerging and more regenerative approach is nucleus augmentation, which aims to restore healthy disc anatomy and biomechanical function through the delivery of a...
