Comment by msuniverse2026

13 hours ago

Scientists regrowing everything except hair. Fuck my life.

I am hoping for advancements in cartilage growth. I underwent microfracture surgery in my knee and will eventually need a replacement unless we make progress in this field. I would prefer to avoid knee replacement if possible because I enjoy being active. I am hopeful we’re getting close.

  • In the summer my knees were so wrecked I could barely make it up and down the stairs. My GP first thought it was an inflammation and prescribed something for that, but when I went back after a couple of weeks he said the cartilage may have worn off and prescribed me Flexofytol. It may be placebo effect, but between taking it a bit easier, cycling more, and the flexofytol, my knees are the best they've been since I injured them in the first place.

  • Anecdotal, but I was going in for carpal tunnel work and ran into an older gentleman, probably early 70s, that had just gone through a knee replacement a week earlier. He was walking around on it and said he wasn't really in any pain.

    I was amazed.

    YMMV.

    • I have heard great things about knee replacements. Unfortunately, I’m relatively young (late 30s). If I were to get a replacement now, I’d likely need another one when I’m older. Additionally, I imagine getting an artificial knee replacement would make you no longer a candidate for lab-grown replacements. There is an option already where they can grow your cartilage in a lab, but it’s quite expensive, and my insurance will not cover it.

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And limbs.

  • I would say every tissue: no bones, no organs, eyes, ears, nerves, skin.

    Like what can they grow?

    • Well, I'm personally hoping stem cells pull through for corneal tissue regrowth. I've got significant scarring in one eye. I'd rather not get a donor (cadaver) cornea sewn on if it's avoidable but we'll see.

      I think they're making progress.

    • Eh? They can grow skin cultures that are good enough to help burn victims. Not, like, with all the pores and follicles being there, but it is skin…

finasteride + minoxidil

  • Once the follicle is closed/gone, it’s gone.

    Minoxidil won’t help grow hair on a patch of bold skin. After that only hair transplantation

    • I'm sure you're correct. That said, I saw a friend who went bald at 28 get all of his hair back from Minoxidil + finasteride. Maybe his folicles weren't closed/gone but he was bald and a year later, was not.

      Apparently there's also now-a-days, Micro-needling, Stem Cell Therapy, Platelet-Rich Plasma, and others. No idea how effective they actually are

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    • This isn’t the whole story. Many people have follicles that are dormant. Many people have success regrowing hair on bald spots with minoxidil and/or finasteride.

      If you look like Sir Patrick Stewart, yeah, that’s not growing back. A bald spot might fill in with medical treatment though.