Bone Growth Stimulator
What You Need to Know about Bone Growth Stimulator Usage
While human bones usually mend naturally with the proper care, but when normal healing is interrupted, the use of a bone growth stimulator could be required.
When a bone breaks, the body begins a process of healing that is broken down into multiple phases. These phases are a meticulous procedure to stop bleeding around the fracture sight, to begin the formation of a fracture callus and finally, the building of new bone around the fracture site so that it will be almost as strong as before the break. The former callus will be substituted with “trabecular” bone during the rebuilding stage, followed by the remodeling phase when the trabecular bone is absorbed and replaced by compact bone once again. It is when this normal series of phases is slow or stopped that bone growth stimulator usage must be implemented to complete healing.
A bone growth stimulator is believed to speed the healing of bone fractures. The determination was made by the theory that the concave side of a fractured bone is negatively charged while the convex side is positively charged, and that applying an electric current to the fracture will promote bone growth and healing. However, the gap between the two ends of the bone must be within specific perimeters in order for the bone growth stimulator to be effective.
Two types of bone growth stimulator processes may be used: invasive stimulators and non-invasive stimulators. These terms refer to the manner in which the stimulation is applied. Invasive stimulation is applied from the inside of the body and the non-invasive is stimulation applied from outside the body. Determining which type of bone growth stimulator is used will be dependent on the where the fracture is located, the type of fracture and if the patient is willing to submit to the length of treatments.
The invasive bone growth stimulator process is an implantation device; either partial or full. The drawback to either is the fact that the implantation is a surgical procedure. The surgery entails an incision to be made under general anesthesia, the stimulator and a battery pack being inserted with a cathode leading into the bone, and the incision closed. Outweighing any drawback is the advantage that a continuous current is now applied to the fractured bone with very little required by the patient themselves.
Non-invasive stimulation does not require any surgery at all. The electromagnetic coils are cuffed onto the patient, placed on either side of the fracture. A pulse is emitted in hour long sessions, with as many as 10 sessions per day. Another non-invasive bone growth stimulator by ultrasound requires shorter periods and is being examined as a possible replacement.
Regardless of which type of bone growth stimulator is used, they are proven to be effective for dealing with slow healing or no healing fractures; with the end result being a normal, full healing of the bone.