Stem Cell Therapy for Ataxia - Stem Cell Therapy

Stem Cell Therapy for Ataxia Abroad

People suffering from Ataxia lack muscle coordination when a voluntary movement is attempted. The condition may affect any motion that requires muscles to work together to perform a function, from walking to picking up an object to swallowing.Ataxia is a sign of an underlying medical problem and is not a disease.

Types of Ataxia

Autosomal dominant ataxias

• Spinocerebellar ataxias
• Episodic ataxia (EA)

Autosomal recessive ataxias

• Friedreich's ataxia
• Ataxia-telangiectasia
• Congenital cerebellar ataxia
• Wilson's disease

Symptoms of Ataxia

• Poor coordination
• Unsteady walk and a tendency to stumble
• Difficulty with fine motor tasks, such as eating, writing or buttoning a shirt
• Change in speech
• Involuntary back-and-forth eye movements (nystagmus)
• Difficulty swallowing

Causes of Ataxia

Damage, degeneration or loss of nerve cells in the part of the brain that controls muscle coordination (cerebellum), results in ataxia. The cerebellum comprises two pingpong-ball-sized portions of folded tissue situated at the base of your brain near your brainstem.

The right side of the cerebellum controls coordination on the right side of the body, while the left side controls coordination on the left.

Diseases that damage the spinal cord and peripheral nerves that connect your cerebellum to the muscles also can cause ataxia. Ataxia causes include:

• Head trauma
• Stroke
• Cerebral palsy
• Autoimmune diseases: Multiple sclerosis, sarcoidosis, celiac disease, etc.
• Infections
• Paraneoplastic syndromes. 
•  Tumor
• Toxic reaction
• Alcohol and drug intoxication; heavy metal poisoning, such as from lead or mercury; and solvent poisoning, such as from paint thinner, also can cause ataxia.
• Vitamin E, vitamin B-12 or thiamine deficiency. 

For some adults who develop sporadic ataxia, no specific cause can be found. Sporadic ataxia can take a number of forms, including multiple system atrophy, a progressive, degenerative disorder.

Hereditary ataxias

Some types of ataxia and some conditions that cause ataxia are hereditary. Genetic ataxia can be inherited from either a dominant gene from one parent (autosomal dominant disorder) or a recessive gene from each parent (autosomal recessive disorder). In the latter case, it's possible that neither parent has the disorder (silent mutation), so there might be no obvious family history. Different gene defects cause different types of ataxia, most of which are progressive. Each type causes poor coordination, but each has specific signs and symptoms.

Stem Cell Therapy for Ataxia

Few conventional treatment options are available for patients diagnosed with ataxia, which mostly focus on alleviating the symptoms. None of them are actually treating the loss of neurological function caused by cell degeneration in the cerebellum, brain stem and/or spinal cord. Stem cells have the ability to regenerate injured cells in the body, helping to reduce/reverse the symptoms and allowing ataxia patients to improve.

Stem cell applications can ameliorate the symptoms of ataxia patients. This is achieved by positively altering the development of certain segments of the brain. The outcome is an enhanced performance in muscular functions, peristaltic movements, and cranial capacity. The patient’s pain receptors are less triggered, and he trembles less frequently.

It’s now common knowledge the enormous potentials which stem cells possess. These cells can replace any cell in the human body regardless of the function the latter performs. Stem cell applications aim to engage this technique in Ataxia treatment by having stem cells work as neuronal cells. Thus, they take up the function of creating dopamine which is conspicuously absent in the brain of an Ataxia patient.

Stem Cell Replacement treatment for Ataxia are without a doubt the most promising treatment solution for those seeing the ability to repair/reverse this kind of permanent brain damage.

Benefits of Stem Cell Therapy

• Better balance and coordination
• Reduced fatigue
• Improved speech
• Decreased tremors
• Improved motor function
• Better swallowing
• Decreased neuropathic pain
• Improved mental alertness

How much does Stem Cell Therapy for Ataxia cost?

Whilst clinical trials for stem cell therapies are underway in the United States, the FDA has not yet approved stem cell treatments in the United States. However, the prospective costs of stem cell therapies range between $10,000 and $50,000, depending on the type of stem cell, frequency of injections, and length of therapy.

Facilities around the world, including those found in Mexico, Europe, and Southeast Asia are able to offer stem cell therapies, including umbilical cord derived stem cells, for an average of about $8,000 a vial, with prices decreasing as the number of vials needed increases.

How to choose the best doctor?

Many facilities worldwide offer stem cell therapy, but it's important to locate accredited and experienced physicians who deal with stem cell treatments. Doctors specializing in neurodegenerative disease processes should be trained, certified and accredited through country of origin or international accreditation and certification boards and should also belong to organizations or associations of their specialty.

Check references and resources to determine whether physicians or specialists are trained, experienced and accredited with Stem Cell therapy treatments with his or her country of origin and that facilities provide state-of the art technology and equipment and have a well maintained, trained and educated staff.

If you need information about where you can get Stem Cell Therapies for Ataxia or if you want to ask us a question, do not hesitate to contact us!