Dr Shrish Dutt Mishra, a consultant in orthopaedic surgery and a specialist in cell therapy, has helped 25-year old Delhi youth, Gurjeet Singh suffering from Avascular Necrosis (AVN) to be back in action following Autologous osteoblast Implantation (ABI) Ossron procedure at a South Delhi hospital.

Avascular Necrosis (AVN) or Osteonecrosis of the Femur Head (ONFH) head, is a condition where there is a decay of the femoral head in the hip joint which ultimately collapses, resulting in total hip replacements. It is a disease with many etiological factors, affecting young population and if not managed timely. The incidence of AVN is increasing. The causes include greater use of exogenous steroids and an increase in trauma.

“Gurjeet was indicated with AVN of the right femoral head, approaching third stage. The choice offered by his doctor was grim; he was told he could wait for a total hip replacement surgery, where he will never be able go back to his absolute normal life with compromised mobility. The situation was more challenging because Gurjeet was a young guy pursuing his higher studies of hospitality management in UK while he was also very keen in sports and he has to resume his studies soon. So, a Harvesting Biopsy was performed on 15th April 2011 by needle aspiration of cells from the posterior iliac crest, to obtain bone cells which took just 10mins. I then had them sent to RMS Regrow Lab at Lonavala through special logistics for culturing, the Only Cell Processing Centre in India for Autologous Cell Therapy. These cells were cultured to transform and expand many folds (up to 48 million cells) for about 5 weeks and it was then sent back to me to be re-implanted into areas where bones were necrosed by disease after curettage. Today, Gurjeet is doing fine and all set to go back to active sports life in a matter of few weeks,” Dr Mishra said.

“I just could not imagine myself being out of active life. When I got to know of the ABI technique being offered here in Delhi, I grabbed the opportunity. The surgery was minimally invasive and there was hardly any pain. I have been informed by Dr Mishra that I shall be ready to get back to active playing in a few weeks. I certainly look forward to it,” said Gurjeet.

“Cultured Autologous Cell Technology has created a new dimension in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine, which will diminish the burden of risks associated with auto and allografts,” added Dr Mishra.