Osteoarthritis

Osteoarthritis, or OA, is the most common form of arthritis. It is a joint condition involving cartilage, bone, the joint lining, muscles, and other tissues around a joint. It commonly affects the knees, hips, hands, and spine. OA can cause pain, stiffness, swelling, reduced range of motion, and difficulty with daily activities. Symptoms often develop gradually and vary from person to person.

Common Symptoms and Risk Factors

Risk factors can include aging, previous joint injury, repetitive stress, excess body weight, and family history. Not everyone with these risk factors develops OA, and symptoms do not always match imaging findings.

There is no single treatment that reverses osteoarthritis. Care is based on the joint involved, symptom severity, activity level, medical history, and personal goals. Many people benefit from a combination of nonsurgical treatments.

Standard Treatment Categories

• Exercise and physical therapy: Strengthening, flexibility, balance, and low-impact activity can support joint function.
• Weight management: When relevant, reducing excess load on weight-bearing joints may improve symptoms.
• Medication: Topical or oral pain-relief medicines may be considered when appropriate.
• Lifestyle and supportive care: Activity modification, sleep, heat or cold, braces, canes, or other assistive devices may help.
• Injections and procedures: Corticosteroid or other injections may be considered in selected situations.
• Joint replacement: Surgery may be an option when severe symptoms do not improve with appropriate nonsurgical care.

Stem cell therapy for osteoarthritis and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy are being studied because injectable biologic approaches may influence inflammation and the environment within painful joints. Researchers are evaluating different cell sources, preparation methods, doses, injection techniques, and patient populations.

What Researchers Are Studying

• Influence inflammatory signaling within the joint
• Support the joint environment and surrounding tissues
• Be delivered safely and feasibly to the affected area
• Improve pain, function, mobility, or other patient-reported outcomes

PRP, cell-based products, and exosome products are distinct approaches. Research results can vary by product, treatment protocol, osteoarthritis severity, and the outcomes measured.

Note: Regenerative therapies for osteoarthritis are not FDA-approved and are investigational. Research findings do not guarantee individual results.

How Regenerative Medicine for Osteoarthritis Is Being Studied

Cell-based approaches, including mesenchymal stromal cell therapies, are being studied for possible effects on inflammation and the joint environment. PRP is made from a person’s own blood and contains platelets and signaling proteins, and is also being studied as an injectable option for osteoarthritis-related pain. Researchers assess pain, function, mobility, imaging findings, and safety using different products, doses, delivery methods, and treatment combinations. This work is helping guide continued research on stem cell treatment for OA and other regenerative medicine approaches.

2025: Umbilical Cord MSC-Derived Exosomes Reported Safety Findings in Knee OA Research

Injection of Human Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Stem Cell Exosomes for the Treatment of Knee Osteoarthritis: From Preclinical to Clinical Research — Read Study

This publication included laboratory and animal research, as well as a clinical component described by the authors as a randomized, double-blind, ascending-dose study. The clinical study screened 84 people with knee osteoarthritis. The publication reported safety and clinical findings that add to research on umbilical-cord-MSC-derived exosomes for knee osteoarthritis.

2025: Cryopreserved Umbilical Cord MSCs Reported Better One-Year Symptom Scores Than Corticosteroid

Efficacy of a Single Dose of Cryopreserved Human Umbilical Cord Mesenchymal Stromal Cells for the Treatment of Knee Osteoarthritis: A Randomized, Controlled, Double-Blind Pilot Study — Read Study

This randomized, double-blind pilot study enrolled 30 people with Kellgren-Lawrence grade II or III knee osteoarthritis. Participants received a single injection of cryopreserved umbilical-cord-derived mesenchymal stromal cells or triamcinolone, a corticosteroid. At 12 months, the cell-treatment group had better WOMAC, pain, and SF-36 scores than the triamcinolone group, and no severe adverse events were reported. These findings add to clinical research on cryopreserved umbilical-cord-MSC treatment for knee osteoarthritis.

2024: UC-MSC Combination Treatment Reported Pain and Function Improvements

Evaluating Synergistic Effects of Hyaluronic Acid, Human Umbilical Cord-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells, and Growth Hormones in Knee Osteoarthritis: A Multi-Arm Randomized Trial — Read Study

This four-arm, double-blind randomized trial evaluated 51 knees from 28 people with Kellgren-Lawrence grade I or II knee osteoarthritis, comparing hyaluronic acid alone, hyaluronic acid with human umbilical-cord-derived MSCs, hyaluronic acid with somatotropin, and all three treatments together. Participants reported improvements in pain and function measures at 12 months, adding clinical information on combination approaches involving hyaluronic acid, UC-MSCs, and growth hormone for knee osteoarthritis.

2023: Repeated Umbilical Cord MSC Injections Reported Pain and Function Improvements

Repeated Intra-Articular Injections of Umbilical Cord-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells for Knee Osteoarthritis: A Phase I, Single-Arm Study — Read Study

This phase I study followed 14 people with mild-to-moderate knee osteoarthritis who received four weekly intra-articular umbilical-cord-derived MSC injections. Pain and function scores improved over three months, and the investigators reported mostly transient, nonserious adverse events. These findings contribute early clinical information on repeated UC-MSC injections for knee osteoarthritis.

2022: PRP Reported Better Function and Disability Outcomes Than Hyaluronic Acid for Hip OA

Comparison Between the Effects of Ultrasound-Guided Intra-Articular Injections of Platelet-Rich Plasma, High-Molecular-Weight Hyaluronic Acid, and Their Combination in Hip Osteoarthritis: A Randomized Clinical Trial — Read Study

This randomized trial included 105 people with grade II or III hip osteoarthritis. Participants received two injections of PRP, high-molecular-weight hyaluronic acid, or both treatments together. All three groups improved from baseline. At six months, the PRP and PRP-plus-hyaluronic-acid groups had better results than hyaluronic acid alone on selected function and disability measures. These findings add to research on PRP as a potential option for hip osteoarthritis.