Stem cell therapy for osteoarthritis uses cells drawn from your own bone marrow or fat tissue to calm inflammation and support joint healing.
This guide covers how it works, what the evidence really shows, who qualifies, and what it costs.
If you’ve been living with joint pain from osteoarthritis, you’ve probably already tried the basics: rest, anti-inflammatories, maybe a cortisone shot that helped for a while and then didn’t.
Stem cell therapy for osteoarthritis keeps coming up as the next option, promising less pain and better movement without surgery.
It’s a reasonable thing to be curious about, and also a reasonable thing to be skeptical of.
Let’s dive into stem cell therapy and see if it is the right treatment for you.
SEE IF STEM CELL THERAPY IS RIGHT FOR YOU
Key Takeaways
- Stem cell therapy uses your own cells to reduce inflammation and support joint tissue, not to regrow cartilage from scratch
- Research shows modest, measurable improvements in pain and function for many patients, though evidence is still considered low certainty
- It isn’t FDA-approved for osteoarthritis, and most insurance plans won’t cover it
- It works best for mild to moderate osteoarthritis, not for joints that are already bone-on-bone
What Is Osteoarthritis, and Why Does It Cause Joint Pain?
Osteoarthritis is the gradual breakdown of the cartilage that cushions your joints, which leads to pain, stiffness, and swelling as bone begins to rub against bone.
It’s the most common form of arthritis and tends to worsen slowly over years, most often affecting the knees, hips, hands, and spine.
It’s also far more common than most people realize.
In the United States, roughly 10% of men and 13% of women over age 60 live with osteoarthritis, and the condition affects an estimated 250 million people worldwide.
As cartilage wears down, the joint loses its natural shock absorber, and the surrounding tissue works harder to compensate, which is part of why pain tends to build gradually rather than appear overnight.
What Is Stem Cell Therapy for Osteoarthritis?
Stem cell therapy for osteoarthritis is a procedure that injects concentrated stem cells, usually taken from your own bone marrow or fat tissue, directly into an arthritic joint.
The goal is to reduce inflammation and support the joint’s own repair processes rather than to rebuild cartilage from the ground up.
The cells most often used are mesenchymal stem cells, or MSCs.
These cells don’t work by physically turning into new cartilage the way a graft would.
Instead, they release proteins and signaling molecules that calm inflammation, recruit repair cells to the area, and create a healthier environment for the joint to function in.
There are several different types of stem cell therapy depending on where the cells are sourced from and how they’re processed, and the right choice depends on your specific joint and how advanced the arthritis is.
How Does the Stem Cell Therapy Procedure Work?
Most osteoarthritis treatments use autologous cells, meaning they come from your own body rather than a donor.
Providers typically collect these cells from bone marrow in the hip or fat tissue from the abdomen, using a local anesthetic to keep the collection comfortable.
Using your own cells matters for safety.
Autologous MSC treatments carry very little risk of an immune reaction, while donor cell products carry a higher chance of infection or an immune response, which is one reason providers generally favor a patient’s own cells for joint treatment.
What Happens During Treatment
Once collected, the sample is spun in a centrifuge to concentrate the stem cells, a process that typically takes 15 to 20 minutes.
Your provider then injects the concentrated cells directly into the arthritic joint, often using ultrasound guidance to make sure the injection lands in the right spot.
The entire visit usually happens in a single outpatient appointment, with no incisions and minimal downtime compared to surgery.
Does Stem Cell Therapy Actually Work for Osteoarthritis?
Stem cell therapy shows modest but measurable benefits for osteoarthritis pain and function, according to current clinical research, though it doesn’t reverse the disease or regrow lost cartilage.
A 2022 Cochrane review, one of the most rigorous types of medical evidence available, found that patients receiving stem cell injections reported pain scores of 3.3 out of 10 compared to 4.5 for placebo, and 68% reported treatment success compared to 53% who received a placebo injection.
That same review rated the certainty of this evidence as low, largely because stem cell preparations vary so much between studies and clinics.
A separate 2025 meta-analysis pooling multiple randomized controlled trials found that MSC injections outperformed placebo for both pain and function at the 12-month mark, which lines up with the Cochrane findings even as researchers keep refining exactly how much benefit to expect.
One of the more useful comparisons comes from Duke Health’s MILES trial, which followed 480 patients across four sites.
Researchers found that three different types of stem cell injections all matched the pain relief of a standard corticosteroid injection at the one-year mark, with no adverse reactions reported in the stem cell groups.
In other words, stem cells didn’t dramatically outperform a cheaper, already-approved option in that study, but they held their own with a strong safety record.
Which Joints Can Stem Cell Therapy Help?
Osteoarthritis can affect nearly any joint, and stem cell therapy has been studied most extensively in the knee, though the same approach applies to other joints as well.
Knees
The knee is the most common site for osteoarthritis and the most studied joint for stem cell therapy.
If knee pain is your main concern, our deeper breakdown of whether stem cell therapy works for knees covers cartilage regrowth, candidacy, and what to expect in more detail.
Hips
Hip osteoarthritis responds to the same general approach, though the joint’s depth can make precise injection placement more important.
Patients with hip arthritis are often evaluated for how advanced the joint space narrowing is before treatment is recommended.
Shoulders
Shoulder osteoarthritis sometimes overlaps with rotator cuff damage, since the two conditions can develop together as the joint wears down.
If a torn rotator cuff is part of the picture, our guide to stem cell treatment for rotator cuff tears explains how that specific injury is evaluated.
Spine and Back
Osteoarthritis in the spine’s facet joints is a common source of chronic back pain, and it’s treated with a similar injection approach.
You can find more detail in our article on stem cell therapy for back pain.
What Are the Benefits of Stem Cell Therapy for Osteoarthritis?
The main benefits of stem cell therapy for osteoarthritis are pain reduction, improved joint function, and a minimally invasive alternative to surgery using your body’s own healing resources.
Because the procedure is a single outpatient injection, most patients return to normal activity within days rather than the weeks or months surgery would require.
It also gives patients who’ve exhausted conservative treatments, like physical therapy and anti-inflammatory medication, another option before considering joint replacement.
For some, that means delaying surgery.
For others, it means finding enough relief that surgery isn’t on the table for the foreseeable future.
SEE IF STEM CELL THERAPY IS RIGHT FOR YOU
What Are the Risks and Side Effects of Stem Cell Therapy?
The most common side effects of stem cell therapy for osteoarthritis are temporary swelling and soreness at the injection site, with serious complications being rare when a patient’s own cells are used.
A systematic review of knee MSC injections found a 12.3% rate of mild, temporary side effects like swelling and pain, with no reported cases of infection, blood clots, or tumor growth tied to the treatment.
The bigger risk isn’t usually the procedure itself.
It’s unrealistic expectations.
Because the treatment isn’t FDA-approved for osteoarthritis, quality and outcomes can vary between providers, and no clinic can honestly guarantee it will let you avoid joint replacement or reverse existing damage.
How Is Stem Cell Therapy Different From PRP Injections?
Stem cell therapy uses living cells capable of signaling and modulating the body’s repair response, while PRP uses concentrated platelets from your own blood to deliver growth factors that support healing.
Both are drawn from your own body and both aim to reduce inflammation, but they work through different biological mechanisms and are often recommended for different stages of osteoarthritis.
Our full comparison of PRP vs. stem cell therapy walks through which treatment tends to fit which situation, including cases where combining the two makes sense.
Who Is a Good Candidate for Stem Cell Therapy?
Good candidates for stem cell therapy typically have mild to moderate osteoarthritis, haven’t found lasting relief from conservative treatment, and want to avoid or delay joint replacement surgery.
Patients with severe, bone-on-bone arthritis or significant joint deformity usually see more limited benefit, since stem cells can’t rebuild a joint that has already lost most of its cartilage.
A thorough evaluation, including imaging and a review of your treatment history, is the best way to know whether your joint is likely to respond.
Results also build gradually rather than appearing overnight, so understanding how long stem cell therapy takes to work helps set realistic expectations from the start.
Regenerative Medicine for Osteoarthritis at Everest Regenerative Medicine
At Everest Regenerative Medicine, evaluating osteoarthritis starts with understanding your specific joint, your activity level, and how far the condition has progressed, not just handing out a standard injection.
Your care is built our regenerative medicine program around addressing the source of joint pain rather than masking symptoms with medication alone.
Every plan starts with a review of your imaging, prior treatments, and goals, whether that’s getting back to walking pain-free or simply avoiding surgery for as long as possible.
Stem Cell Therapy for Osteoarthritis in West Fargo, North Dakota
Patients throughout West Fargo and the surrounding North Dakota, Minnesota, and South Dakota region come to Everest Regenerative Medicine to find out whether stem cell therapy fits their osteoarthritis.
Our team reviews your imaging and treatment history in person before recommending any path forward, including osteoarthritis treatment options available here in West Fargo.
The Bottom Line on Stem Cell Therapy for Osteoarthritis
Stem cell therapy for osteoarthritis isn’t a cure, and it won’t regrow the cartilage you’ve already lost.
What the evidence does support is a reasonable chance of reduced pain and improved function for people with mild to moderate arthritis, using a treatment drawn from their own body with a strong safety record.
Whether it’s worth the cost and effort depends on your specific joint, how advanced your arthritis is, and what you’ve already tried.
Everest Regenerative Medicine offers consultations to review your imaging, talk through whether you’re a good candidate, and build a plan around your goals rather than a one-size-fits-all recommendation.
FAQs: Stem Cell Therapy for Osteoarthritis
Does stem cell therapy work for knee osteoarthritis?
Research shows it can provide modest pain relief and improved function for many patients with knee osteoarthritis, particularly in mild to moderate cases. It’s less effective for severe, bone-on-bone arthritis, where joint replacement tends to offer more lasting relief.
How long does it take to feel results from stem cell therapy?
Most patients notice initial improvement within four to six weeks, with continued gains over the following two to three months as inflammation settles and the joint responds. Full results can take up to several months to fully develop.
Is stem cell therapy painful, and what are the side effects?
The injection itself feels similar to a standard joint injection, with some soreness or swelling for a few days afterward being normal. Serious side effects are rare when a patient’s own cells are used, since there’s minimal risk of an immune reaction.
Can stem cell therapy help me avoid joint replacement surgery?
For some patients with mild to moderate osteoarthritis, it can meaningfully delay the need for surgery by reducing pain and improving function. It can’t reverse severe joint damage, so it isn’t a reliable substitute for replacement once a joint is bone-on-bone.