Can brain damage caused during birth be ever reversed? Is it possible to repair the damaged brain tissues among children, who suffer from Cerebral Palsy (CP)?

So far, the treatment option for CP is to manage the symptoms of the ailment. However, in recent times, scientists and researchers worldwide have started to explore stem cell therapy as a potential treatment option for CP patients.

Can stem cells reverse the brain damage, which is the sole cause for CP among children? Our research on over 100 CP patients and stem cell therapy has been very encouraging. The patients, who underwent stem cell therapy, have displayed huge improvement in CP symptoms, says Professor and Head of Neurosurgery, LTM Medical College, Mumbai, Alok Sharma.

The neurosurgeon, who is taking part in an international conference on CP in Hyderabad this weekend, said that doctors are not concentrating on treating the brain damage.

The current treatment options available to help patients are only to mange symptoms and nobody tries to repair the underlying damage to the brain tissue. Therefore, developing a standard therapeutic approach for CP through stem cells is the need of the hour, he said.

The results from the stem cell therapy on CP patients conducted by Dr. Aloks team were recently published in Neurogens chapter on Stem cell therapy for cerebral palsy A Novel Option in a book titled Cerebral Palsy Challenges For the Future. According to the neurosurgeon, the patients after therapy had improvements in their speech, balance, upper and lower limb activity and movement.

While for stem cell research, many prefer cord blood banking, Dr. Alok pointed out that they have used stem cells from the adults derived from the bone marrow. The transplanted stem cells have the ability to migrate to the area of the damaged tissue in the brain and home-in on those affected areas to help repair the damage. Stem cells release substance that stimulates natural growth, which decreases the process of damage of the brain, Dr. Alok explained.

The researcher, who has started NeuroGen Brain and Spine Institute in Mumbai to conduct stem cell research, pointed out that stem cell therapy and other rehabilitation programmes should be encouraged for the benefit of CP patients. The positive changes that we recorded in our patients were not just restricted to their symptoms but also constructive change in brain metabolism observed through PET-CT scans, he explained. Dr. Alok Sharma can be reached at: alok276@gmail.com

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Fighting CP through stem cell therapy