STEM CELL

Stem cell therapies - are they the future in cardiology?



Stem cell therapies - are they the future in cardiology?

Introduction

Heart failure is a major public health disease in industrialized countries. For this reason, the cell therapy has developed as a new strategy to improve the structure and functioning myocardial failure. It is the fact that the future of the stem cell therapies in cardiology is essential and it is a valuable research. Stem cells have a great use in cardiology; we will discuss the types of stem cells used in cardiology to understand the future of stem cells in cardiology. The main focus will be on the Stem cell therapies. It will also discuss the effective use of these therapies in the future of cardiology.

Stem cells are unique cells capable of differentiating into specialized cell types when required. Stem cells aid in the healing process of injuries by regenerating the lost areas of the body. Broken bones, ripped muscles, cut or scratched skin and other possible damages are covered with stem cells of the body. They regenerate forming into the specialized cells (muscle cells, bone cells, blood cells, skin cells, etc.) to make up for the loss. Stem cells are further categorized in terms of their sources; embryonic stem cells and adult stem cells. Embryonic stem cells are derived from a four to five days old human embryo, which further divide and specialize to form different parts organs and other body structures. Adult stem cells, or somatic stem cells, are found within different types of tissues. These remain in a dormant state for years until stimulated by a disease or injury.

Discussion

One of the most common causes for death is Ischaemic heart disease (IHD). It accounts for 7.2 million deaths globally every year (~12% of all reported deaths). Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) affects ~250 000 people each year in the UK; and subsequent heart failure with left ventricular systolic dysfunction (LVSD) is common with an estimated prevalence of 3% of people aged over 45. On an estimate, there are 10% of the patients who are suffering from the heart failure have dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). Regardless of etiology the disease of heart failure linked with the considerable mortality and morbidity reflected by a 5-year mortality varying from 26 to 75%, a prognosis that is worse than most cancers. Patients with heart failure can be significantly limited in term of exercise capacity; which can vary from being breathless on moderate exertion to being breathless at rest. This affects patients' quality-of-life as well as having a major socioeconomic cost burden. The annual cost of heart failure to the UK National Health Service is just over £625 million; and it has been estimated that IHD costs the economy £3.9 billion in lost productivity.

Myocardial infarction and heart failure are associated with significant loss of cardiomyocytes, which was thought, to be an irreversible process that, the heart is considered a mortally distinguished organ. However, the discovery of tissue resident heart stem cells and the ability of the ...