Arrowhead Health Centers, a multi-disciplinary medical practice, has introduced a new way to treat a variety of ailments, from a weekend warrior’s torn rotator cuff, to a former athlete’s lower back pain, or an active adult’s long-standing knee pain. With the launch of its Total Joint Rejuvenation Program, Arrowhead Health Centers is now offering a proprietary regenerative cell therapy for the treatment of large joint osteoarthritis (shoulder, knee, hip, ankle) as well as degenerative spinal conditions.

The non-surgical outpatient procedure, performed under the direction of double board-certified and fellowship trained interventional pain specialists Matthew Crooks, MD and Deepesh Shah, MD, utilizes Skye Biologics PX50, an injectable regenerative tissue matrix derived from maternal placental tissue donated after a healthy, live birth, yielding healthy tissue rich in proteins, growth factors, hyaluronic acid, cytokines and other natural cells that heal soft tissue damage.

“This is an advanced therapy that provides the building blocks for the cells in the body to regenerate tissue at the site of injection,” said Crooks. “Over the course of several weeks to months, the tissue is rebuilt, joints are healed and patients can go back to doing the activities they love, pain free.”

As opposed to steroid injections, placental tissue injections focus on harnessing the body’s natural regenerative power to transform damaged tissue into healthy tissue. Tissues are sourced from donors after C-section birth who have gone through a rigorous screening process, as determined by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB).

One of Arrowhead Health Centers’ recent success stories includes former NFL player and Hall of Famer Eric Dickerson. After multiple career injuries to his neck and shoulder, Dickerson was sidelined from his NFL career after doctors feared he would eventually become paralyzed or die from his injuries. He retired from the NFL in 1993, but several months ago, he experienced a back injury that left him in severe pain.

“I was down and out and didn’t know what to do,” said Dickerson. “I thought it would get better over time, but it didn’t.”

Following recommendations from his team of medical professionals and friends, Dickerson turned to Arrowhead Health Centers in search of a permanent solution to his chronic pain. “My first question was ‘what’s the downside?’ I found out there was no downside, except the procedure may not work,” he said. On Jan. 26, Dickerson underwent four placental tissue injections at Arrowhead Health Centers’ ambulatory surgery center in Scottsdale. The following day, he traveled to Los Angeles to film season eight of NBC’s “The Celebrity Apprentice.”

Patients suffering from any kind of joint, tendon or ligament pain in any area of their body may be considered candidates for Arrowhead Health Centers’ Total Joint Rejuvenation Program. For more information, or to schedule a consultation, please call 1 (888) 986-7579 or visit programs.arrowheadhealth.com/regenerative-medicine/.