advertisement | The CORE Institute coming up with a treatment plan. Many patients are not ready for invasive surgery and are looking for other options. I chose to offer a fat-based technology compared to bone marrow because the patient may have more pain at the site where the bone marrow is taken. I chose fat over amniotic fluid and tissue because I prefer the tissue to come from the patient’s own body” Dr. Jefferey Michaelson is one the first physicians in Michigan to use the Lipogems system where a patient’s own fat tissue is used to help support the reconstruction, repair, or replacement of damaged or injured tissue. “In your own fat, you have the most amount of reparative cells that can assist with healing your orthopedic conditions that affect your joint and muscle. We chose Lipogems system because the system is cleared for use by the FDA and provides a simple and minimally-invasive option that can be performed in about an hour. We harvest the fat from the belly or flank “love handles” and the system cleans the patient’s own fatty tissue using only saline and concentrates the fat tissue cells into a smaller size. The fat is then injected into the orthopedic site to support the repair, reconstruction, or replacement of damaged or injured tissue. “I like that this option can be used at as another option to major surgery or added to a major surgery to help with the healing. Our goal is to treat different types of patients and help them get back to their lives as best as possible. As responsible healthcare providers at The CORE Institute, we liked that the Lipogems system is cleared by the FDA for use in orthopedics and has strong science behind the technology,” said Dr. Michaelson. into the treatment site. The Lipogems difference is that the cells inside of your own powerful fat stay intact and act harmoniously in the body to repair, restructure, replace to cushion and support the tissue during the repair, replacement, or reconstruction of damaged or injured tissue. “When I tell my patients about fat, the first thing they say is that they have plenty and are happy to get rid of some of it,” said Dr. Michaelson. “I stay with my patients throughout the entire procedure, and I walk them through the steps of the procedure. Since they have a local anesthetic, they are very comfortable throughout the procedure.” “One benefit of Lipogems is that the recovery from the procedure is minimal compared to invasive surgery,” said Dr. Michaelson. “Lipogems gives another treatment option that is minimally invasive that has strong basic science behind it for patients that have an orthopedic condition but are not ready for invasive surgery.” WĂƟĞŶƚ͛ƐŽǁŶĨĂƚďĞŝŶŐƉƌŽĐĞƐƐĞĚďLJƚŚĞ>ŝƉŽŐĞŵƐ^LJƐƚĞŵƵƐŝŶŐ ŽŶůLJƐĂůŝŶĞ THE POWER OF FAT Fat is crucial for your health, and the reparative cells help to promote a healing environment in response to a tissue injury. Inside of your own fat, there are many different types of cells that are used for healing (including pericytes, adipose-derived stem cells, adipocytes, etc.). These cells need to stay together to work as a functional unit as it does naturally in the body. “Fat has the best reparative cells and is easier to get and more comfortable for the patients. Compared to the bone marrow technique, tapping into the bone to get the bone marrow is uncomfortable for my patients and is a turnoff for them. As you age, the quality of the bone marrow cells decline,” said Dr. Michaelson “In fact, fat has 100 to 500 times more reparative cells compared to bone marrow and 5,500 times more than the amniotic fluid that comes from a donor.” &ŝŶĂůĐŽŶĐĞŶƚƌĂƚĞĚĨĂƚĐĞůůƐƵƐŝŶŐƚŚĞ>ŝƉŽŐĞŵƐ^LJƐƚĞŵƚŚĂƚĂƌĞ ƌĞĂĚLJĨŽƌŝŶũĞĐƟŶŐ SIMPLE AND MINIMALLY INVASIVE PROCEDURE In less than an hour, the fat is extracted from the abdomen or flank “love handles” and injected into the area. The entire procedure is performed in an office setting using local anesthesia. The collected fat is then processed in the special Lipogems device using sterile saline solution to wash, rinse, and resize the tissue into smaller clusters while maintaining the natural beneficial properties of your fat. The blood, inflammatory cells, and fatty oils are removed as the desirable remainder of your fat is concentrated. The resulting tissue is injected KRISTIN’S STORY: <ƌŝƐƟŶ͕ǀŝĚZƵŶŶĞƌ͕tŝĨĞ͕ĂŶĚDŽƚŚĞƌ “Running has always been a passion of mine. However, the years of running were starting to take a toll on my knees. Several years ago, Dr. Michaelson performed an arthroscopic procedure to clean up the inside of my knee. However, my knees were starting to bother me again, and I couldn’t enjoy any activities that I love. My husband and I have three kids in college that we support and I couldn’t take the time away from work for an invasive surgical procedure. I heard about the Lipogems procedure from my coworker and I thought it was cool! I asked Dr. Michaelson if I was a candidate and thankfully he told me that I was! I liked that Lipogems is a minimally invasive procedure uses my own fat, and the procedure is done in the office. I ended up getting both of my knees done. On the first day, I had some pain and I took a Motrin and I iced my knee the next day. The next day I went back to work and no problems with my pain. I talked to my coworker who also got the Lipogems procedure and she helped me set my expectations. I’m five months from my procedure and I’m so happy to live an active lifestyle and I can work freely to support my kids and their college education. Dr. Michaelson and Physician Assistant, Ashley Tamme, were very knowledgeable about the procedure and were extremely professional. They explained everything that they were doing and were genuinely concerned about me and made sure that I was comfortable. I asked a lot of questions, and they answered my questions thoroughly. I was pleased with the fact that they were so comfortable with the procedure.” WORKING TOGETHER TO FIND A SOLUTION THAT’S RIGHT FOR YOU The CORE Institute is world renowned for their leadership in developing quality measures and metrics to determine the best quality of care to provide patients. “The future of medicine is built on providing high- quality care by tracking outcomes by research and adjusting the patient care. I wanted to be part of a group that is at the forefront of creating the new medical environment and providing patients the best treatment available,” said Dr. Michaelson. “All of my partners are highly trained, and the practice is committed to providing best-in-class outcomes that separate us from the other institutions.” “My patients include a wide age from teenagers to active, elderly patients. I do my best to help the patient decide what is best for their goals, lifestyle, and current situation. Adding reparative medicine solutions, like Lipogems, gives me another option for my patients. IMPORTANCE OF FDA CLEARANCE: BUYER BEWARE “Not all technologies are the same, and some are not even cleared for use by the FDA. For example, many clinics that are offering fat that is processed using enzymes and isolates a specific cell. This is not cleared for use by the FDA,” said Dr. Michaelson. Many clinics, run by non-surgeon providers, are offering stem cell treatments at high prices. Also, many clinics may offer adipose-derived stem cells that are not compliant with the FDA standards. At The CORE Institute, our goal is to provide the right treatment options for the patient at a reasonable price with solutions that have strong science behind the technology and are cleared by the FDA. Is Lipogems procedure right for you? To learn more about how Dr. Jefferey Michaelson may help you, please visit www.thecoreinstitute.com/ lipogems or call 866.239.0304. ^ƉŽŶƐŽƌĞĚďLJ>ŝƉŽŐĞŵƐ jn May 10 • 2018 11