So, the n-STRIDE autologous blood protein injection is a good option for treatment of
osteoarthritis in the knee, and now in other joints as well. It is a simple procedure,
involves taking blood from the patient, purifying proteins from that blood and injecting a small
amount of protein rich fluid back into the knee in a minimally invasive manner. There
is no anaesthetic involved and it is essentially what we call a walk-in walk-out procedure.
When comparing this type of injection to other injections such as steroids or lubricants,
the injection involves use of the patient's own blood proteins and therefore no drugs
are injected. Secondly, it is a natural biological treatment and thirdly, the mechanism in which
it acts is such that it is aimed at trying to reduce or slow the progress of osteoarthritis,
whereas the other injections just try to improve the symptoms.
So, the treatment is a treatment for osteoarthritis. Initially, the treatment has been brought
to the UK for treatment of osteoarthritis of the knee, but through the company that
promotes this product, I have permission to treat patients with osteoarthritis in other
joints. So therefore, I have treated patients with osteoarthritis in the hip and in the
ankle as well, but predominantly the treatment has been available for osteoarthritis in the
knee. It is indicated for patients with moderate arthritis, not severe arthritis. It is not
a substitute for total knee replacement. It's ideal in patients who we call the gap generation
where keyhole surgery is not going to really give them a great deal of benefit. We know
that keyhole surgery for osteoarthritis doesn't yield very good results and in patients with
moderate arthritis their arthritic changes are not severe enough to need a total knee
replacement, but they still remain quite symptomatic and it is in those patients where we aim to
get the most benefit.
So, the treatment protocols for the n-STRIDE autologous blood protein injection involves
a single injection of the n-STRIDE blood protein into the knee. So therefore, only one injection
is required. We then reassess the patient at regular intervals to see how they're getting
on. In my data collection study which is part of a larger data collection study with a number
of centres across Europe, we are assessing the patients over a two-year period. We're
defining success as symptomatic improvement for greater than 12 months, because we know
that some patients do get benefit from steroid injections or lubricant injections for four
to six months. So therefore, we want to define our patients with positive results as better
than those compared to steroids or lubricants.
So, the n-STRIDE autologous blood protein injection is a very simple minimally invasive
procedure that involves taking the patient's own blood from the patient's arm, purifying
proteins from that blood through two simple centrifuge processes which take a total of
approximately 20 minutes. This leaves approximately three mils of protein rich fluid which is
injected through a very small needle into the patient's knee. The procedure is carried
out under aseptic conditions and we have seen no major side effects. I've carried out a
data collection study and in that data collection study we look for adverse reactions and the
only reactions that have been reported have been temporary transient pain, swelling and
stiffness for no more than 24 to 48 hours. We have seen no other adverse reactions. Of
course, in some patients it may not work but we see greater than 75 percent success rates
so far. Again, it's a natural biological treatment there are no other drugs injected into the
knee and therefore there are no foreign body reactions that we have seen either.