Autistic children have difficulty interacting with people, which makes it difficult to make friends. This means they are more likely to develop a sense of ‘aloneness’ and possibly suffer from depression. Stem cell therapy has recently been gaining popularity as a way of helping autistic patients cope better with everyday life by giving them the ability to actually feel emotions such as happiness or sadness that their peers experience without any ill effects on their mental health..
Stem cell therapy for autism has been a promising treatment option that has shown to be effective in some cases. The “what is stem cell therapy for autism” article discusses the effects and costs of stem cell therapy in 2022.
You want to see your autistic kid reach his or her full potential as a parent. You may wish to seek stem cell treatment for autism as soon as a facility provides it, since it seems to be a miraculous cure. You want to do everything that could improve your child’s ability to operate in the world.
Many clinics provide stem cell therapy for a variety of ailments, including autism. While vital new medical research is being undertaken on the effectiveness of stem cells in treating autistic symptoms, none of these therapies have gotten FDA clearance.
These stem cell therapy therapies will no longer be deemed safe for children with autism in 2022.
What Is Stem Cell Therapy and How Does It Work?
Stem cell therapy is a relatively young branch of medicine with enormous promise for treating illnesses for which there are few viable treatments.
However, certain surgeries claiming to employ stem cells to renew, enhance, or even cure illnesses that do not have an immediate solution are dubious. It may be difficult to distinguish between what is touted as a valid medical therapy and what may be damaging to someone with a long-term disease like autism.
Because stem cells are essentially a clean slate for making new cells, they are frequently referred to as the body’s “master cells.” Stem cells are the precursors of bones, organs, blood, and brain cells.
These cells may be able to renew, restore, or even replace these tissues in certain cases. This implies that stem cells, when utilized in some medical therapies, have the ability to address a wide range of underlying problems. In the United States, stem cell products are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The FDA has authorized the restricted use of stem cells in the treatment of certain cancers and blood and bone marrow diseases. More disorders may seem to have prescription stem cell therapies when more stem cell treatments are studied in clinical trials in closely controlled human investigations. While clinical trials are essential and may benefit study participants, only a small percentage of them result in cures or even treatments to control the illness.
Before going to a facility that offers stem cell therapy, be sure the practitioners have FDA clearance for the procedure.
Is It Effective for Autistic Children?
Autism is one of the illnesses that might benefit from stem cell therapy in the future. The major effects of this developmental condition are on behavior, socialization, communication, and cognition.
There is some anecdotal evidence that clinics providing unlicensed stem cell therapies assist persons with autism; however, medical research show that this is not the case. Behavior therapy, such as applied behavior analysis, is now the best treatment for autism (ABA).
Where Can You Find Autism Stem Cell Therapies?
Several facilities provide stem cell therapy for a variety of ailments, including autism, joint discomfort from any cause, and multiple sclerosis. Fat cells given or sold following liposuction procedure are often employed in treatment.
These cells are usually autologous, which means they are taken from the patient and then put back into the patient to generate the stem cell treatment. Some facilities employ bone marrow or umbilical cord material from donors who are not genetically related to the patient.
While many of the claimed advantages are linked with illnesses that have symptoms that change over time, it is crucial to remember that many of the reported benefits are related with disorders that have symptoms that fluctuate over time. Arthritis symptoms, for example, may come and go, with flare-ups of pain and inflammation lasting many weeks or months before disappearing when the ailment goes into remission.
Current Stem Cell Therapy Offerings for Autism are in Controversy
Autism is often diagnosed in children as early as two or three years old. It is widely accepted that autistic children should get evidence-based treatment such as ABA therapy to help them communicate, think, and socialize more effectively later in life. Many novel autism therapies have yet to be proved effective.
It may be difficult to tell if improvements in symptoms are due to the therapy or to normal developmental changes that can contribute to improvements in autism symptoms as a kid grows older in medical research into any therapy, even a novel treatment like stem cell injections. More study is required to draw firm findings, since there is presently a scarcity of research on stem cell treatment for autism.
There are fears that businesses are preying on autistic parents by promising a cure for autism or a significant improvement in symptoms that has yet to be demonstrated. For this procedure, some stem cell therapy businesses charge tens of thousands of dollars. The therapies may be unlawful, dangerous, and possibly hazardous, according to regulators.
Autism Research on Stem Cell Therapy
While commercial stem cell treatment should be avoided by parents, research into the procedure is underway.
There were multiple clinical studies employing stem cells to address autistic symptoms as of a 2018 meta-survey.
Overall Improvement with the Risk of Negative Consequences
One research, for example, tracked 32 school-aged individuals with an average age of 10.5 years. BMMNC (bone marrow-derived mononuclear cell) transplantation, which involves blood stem cells, was performed on the group. Intrathecal cellular treatment was used in conjunction with other key autism therapies, such as occupational, sensory integration, psychiatric, nutritional, and speech therapy.
Three individuals had seizures throughout the research, and a small fraction of the group had modest increases in hyperactivity as a consequence of the stem cell therapy. However, gains in social interactions and reciprocity, such as smiling and eye contact, as well as thinking, attention, and cognition, as well as speech and language patterns and use, were seen as a group. Inappropriate emotional reactions, self-stimulating activities, excitement or agitation for no apparent cause, and excessive emotional responses were also reduced.
While there were some negative side effects, the tiny group saw considerable benefits.
With a higher IQ, there are more advantages for nonverbal children.
Another research experiment looked at a group of autistic children aged 2 to 7 to investigate whether autologous umbilical cord blood (AUCB) transplantation may help with any of the symptoms of autism. The subjects were split into two groups, one of which had the stem cell transplant and the other of which received saline injections.
The group that got infusions scored higher on socializing, communication, and adaptive behavior during a six-month follow-up than the control group. At a one-year follow-up, the improvement was still there.
Unlike some other research, this sort of stem cell infusion seems to help nonverbal children with higher IQs the most. According to the researchers, the gains might be attributed to the children’s natural growth when they entered preschool.
The Importance of FDA Approval
There have been three additional important stem cell trials involving children with autism, but the therapies utilized, research participants, results monitored, and even how the studies were conducted have all differed significantly.
Clinical studies, however, do not establish that stem cell treatments work. Using anything that hasn’t been approved by the FDA might endanger your kid.
In 2022, There Will Be Issues Obtaining Stem Cell Therapy for Autism
While you want to do all you can to assist your kid, unapproved therapies like stem cell therapy come with some major hazards. These dangers exist even if the clinic is run by doctors, has a good reputation, and looks to be clean.
If you use an untested, FDA-unapproved treatment, such as stem cell therapy, you might put your kid at risk for:
- Infections.
- Tumors.
- Unfamiliar cells cause inflammatory diseases.
- Injection sites cause skin inflammation.
- When lumbar punctures are used, they might cause damage to the central nervous system.
These clinics do not have permits or control since they are not legitimate medical clinics. These therapies are not covered by health insurance since they are deemed experimental.
These clinics are basically small businesses. They often demand a large sum of money while artificially boosting your expectations regarding the result. When a therapy fails, parents are faced with sadness and anguish, as well as a significant financial loss.
What You Can Do to Help Your Child
When your kid is diagnosed with autism, the best approach to assist them is to follow your pediatrician’s and other experts’ recommendations for evidence-based therapy.
Behavior therapy, such as ABA, will almost certainly be used in treatment. This treatment has been found to assist persons with autism control behaviors linked with the illness through decades of practice and several medical investigations. Depending on the severity of the illness and the child’s unique requirements, speech therapy and occupational therapy are often included in an autism treatment plan.
Art therapy or music therapy are examples of complementary therapies that may be used to complete out a treatment plan. These creative treatments aid in the improvement of behaviors, social skills, communication, and motor abilities.
There is no recognized cure for autism in 2021. While it may be tempting to seek any therapy that promises to be a miraculous cure, keep in mind that these claims are not supported by research. Unfortunately, parents who seek these bogus therapies waste money and put their children through a lot of stress.
We’ll learn more about this prospect in the coming years thanks to current clinical studies examining the effectiveness of stem cell treatment for autism. Until then, keep to the treatments recommended by your treatment team. This will assure your child’s safety and development.
References
The “stem cell therapy for autism cost” is a treatment that has been used for years. It is not widely available in the United States, but it may be more accessible in 2020.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the possible side effects or harmful effects of stem cell therapy?
A: There is no real side effects to stem cell therapy. The main issue with using it at the moment is that there isnt enough evidence as of yet to show how safe and effective it really is, so doctors are still trying to figure out what can go wrong or why a particular treatment doesnt work for someone else.
What are the disadvantages of stem cell therapy?
A: One disadvantage of stem cell therapy is that it usually does not work on all forms of cancer. Other disadvantages include the following: side effects, cost, and FDA regulation for use in humans.
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Janice is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst. She graduated from the University of British Columbia with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology and Special Education. She also holds a Master of Science in Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA) from Queen’s University, Belfast. She has worked with and case managed children and youth with autism and other intellectual and/or developmental disabilities in home and residential setting since 2013.
