Amniotic Treatments for the Treatment of Knee OA: Do They Work and Are They Safe?

Perinatal orthobiologics, or birth-associated products for musculoskeletal pathologies are autologous or allogeneic therapeutics sourced from biomaterials donated and recovered from healthy individuals during or around the birthing process. As popularity related to stem cell therapy for knee osteoarthritis (OA) has grown, perinatals are often purported to be a type of stem cell therapy for operative and nonoperative use. Though several such products have already been trialed in humans for knee OA, these products will require premarket authorization in the form of a biologics license application (BLA). We review the nomenclature, basic science and clinical research for perinatal orthobiologics to date.