ORLANDO, Fla. – If you think your dog is suffering from arthritis, researchers at the University of Florida's Health Science Center want you.
[WEB EXTRA: See if your pet meets study criteria | More info on stem cell process]
Well, actually your pet.
Your dog may be eligible for a blind study being conducted by the University of Florida's College of Veterinary Medicine.
UF veterinarians are looking for 30 dogs, ages 2 to 10 years old, to participate in the next phase of a stem cell therapy project.
The dogs must be healthy, 10 to 120 pounds, and should have been diagnosed with elbow arthritis or "dysplasia" by their local vet.
Doctor's are injecting stem cells directly into the elbows (front leg joints) of the animals to determine if the treatment will decrease the inflammation and pain associated with elbow dysplasia.
Dr. Stanley Kim, a specialist in small animal surgery, says some pets are given a placebo and not even the owner will know if saline or stem cells have been injected into the pet's joints until the 6 month study is completed.
The dogs are evaluated at one month, three months and then again at six months but no dog will be left without the stem cell therapy.
"That's another important point," Kim says. "That is, that the dogs in the placebo group will receive the stem cells at the end."
Kim says there is no cost to pet owners "with the caveat that they return to follow-up in a diligent manor."
Ali Fritz, a student at the university's veterinary medicine college submitted her 9-year-old dog, Bella, for the study.
The Springer-Spaniel has been favoring her right leg during the 6 month study and Fritz was hoping her dog was given the placebo.
She was right.
"Yeah, she was given the placebo which really makes me happy" Fritz says. "Because she wasn't progressing like I wanted her to."
Dr. Anna Dunlap is overseeing the project. Dunlap stresses that pet owners shouldn't expect the "holy grail" because there is no cure.
"We're not saying we're going to cure arthritis and heal everything within the joint, the hope is that have a better quality of life."
Animal Cell Therapies, Inc. is providing the stem cells for the blind study.
The west-coast based group specializes in what it calls "pure and potent high quality stem cell treatments for orthopedic and chronic diseases in dogs."
The study is expected to continue through July 2015.
If you are interested in submitting your pet to be considered for the study, call 352-392-2235 to see if your pet meets the study's criteria.
For more information about the stem cell process, go to actcells.com.