Thursday, August 12, 2010, 7:03 AM
Updated: Thursday, August 12, 2010, 10:42 AM
RANDOLPH — Bentley slowly lumbered
through the cramped waiting room of the
American Animal Hospital in Randolph
Wednesday, sheepishly eyeing people as he
sat down.Slowly wagging his shaggy white tail, the 2-year-old Great Pyrenees looked to be a much older dog as he struggled to carry his 105-pound frame. He was clearly in pain, suffering from a torn ligament and arthritic back-right knee.
"I just want to give Bentley some relief, just so I can walk him again. I’m not expecting him to be a marathon runner," said owner Erin McGuire.
That is why she drove her pampered pet 80 miles from their Brielle home to have the dog undergo the first one-day, animal stem cell transplant procedure in New Jersey history.
The technique ultimately will stimulate cell regeneration in Bentley, reduce inflammation and, more important, ease his pain so that he will again walk comfortably — possibly in two weeks, said Michael Hutchinson, a veterinarian from the Pittsburgh suburb of Cranberry Township, Pa.
He is the leading practitioner of animal stem cell regeneration in the United States, having performed the procedure on about 100 dogs, cats and even horses since 2008. Although the procedure is approved only for animal ailments such as hip dysplasia, arthritis and ligament injuries, it is providing some hope of uncovering solutions to medical problems afflicting humans as well as cats, dogs and horses.
"When I began working with this, I would have stopped at one or two if it did not work. I’m seeing results all the time," Hutchinson said.
"The basic procedure involves taking fat from the dog, extracting stem cells and injecting those stem cells back into the dog," said Brian T. Voynick, owner and director of the Randolph hospital.
The process does not involve controversial human embryonic stem cells, and the cutting edge treatment was endorsed by the American Veterinary Medical Association in 2006.
"We wouldn’t comment on one particular procedure, but generally we support and encourage the ethical study and use of animal stem cells for the benefit of animal and human health," AVMA spokesman Tom McPheron said Wednesday.
Dr.
Brian T. Voynick, right, the owner and
director of the American Animal Hospital
in Randolph, removes small sections of fat
from the shoulder of a Great Pyrenees
which he places into a specimen jar being
held by Dr. Mike Hutchinson, of
Pittsburgh.Voynick was the first veterinarian in the state to use stem cell treatment with animals three years ago. But the process then was more cumbersome and still considered alternative medicine. It required a three- to four-day process after the pet was operated on to remove 60 grams of fat.
The fat then had to be mailed to California to be prepared.
In contrast, Bentley’s procedure, newer and improved, took less than four hours at Voynick’s hospital Wednesday.
After anesthetizing the large dog, Voynick and Hutchinson surgically removed 16 grams of fat from under the dog’s left shoulder, then mixed it with platelets extracted from about four teaspoons of the dog’s blood and enzymes. The resulting serum was incubated, spun in a centrifuge and finally exposed to wavelengths of LED lighting under a process patented by an Australian-based company called MediVet.
Bentley was given a good prognosis
Wednesday, but only time will tell if the
procedure was successful.
"The technology is so new, we don’t know if
it will be months or years that it lasts,"
Voynick said, noting repeat injections
sometimes are needed.
There also is the price tag. While far less than the $3,200 attached to the older methodology, Bentley’s treatment cost $1,800 and was not covered by pet insurance because it was a ligament injury.
"Regular surgery would have cost me much more," McGuire said. "I just want Bentley to be more comfortable."
| Randolph veterinarian uses new stem cell therapy on ailing pets |
