The potential of stem cell therapy for osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis

Joint diseases are a major cause of disability and are a significant financial burden on health care systems. Regenerative medicine offers exciting possibilities for treating osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. As well as possessing the ability to differentiate into other tissue lineages, some stem cells such as mesenchymal stem cells possess immmunomodulatory properties that make them useful in the search for alternative treatments for rheumatoid arthritis specifically. Various studies have been carried out using animal models to evaluate the role of stem cells in the treatment of arthritis, with some research being translated into clinical studies. However, the number of patients used in some studies has left questions on the ability of stem cell therapy to treat arthritic conditions unanswered. This article reviews the innovative studies that have been carried out to treat arthritis using stem cells and also highlights the key challenges associated with these techniques.