Man-made spinal discs could cure back pain, stopping misery for millions of people within a decade

It is one of the most common causes of sick leave and long-term disability, causing misery for millions of people.
But now, back pain could be solved by man-made spinal discs, which could be available within  a decade.
The ‘living’ discs are packed with shock-absorbing cells and, in preliminary trials, behaved just like the real thing when implanted into bad backs.


So far, they have only been tested on animals using cells taken from sheep, but the U.S. research team believe the approach holds hope for people.
Dr Lawrence Bonassar, a biomedical engineer, said the first human trials may start in five years and within ten years, off-the-peg discs made using human tissue could be in widespread use.
‘That seems to be a long way away,’ he said. ‘But when you think about the idea of what we are doing and how we are able to recreate this complex organ from scratch, to be within a decade is very exciting for us.’

The number of Britons suffering back pain has doubled in the last 40 years. Degenerative disc disease, where the shock-absorbing discs that cushion the vertebrae of the spine wear away, affects almost everyone over 50.
In the most severe cases, the damaged discs are removed in a major operation and the vertebrae fused together using rods, pins and other devices to stabilise the spine. But recovery can take months and may not be completely satisfactory.

Dr Lawrence Bonassar said trials with the dics on humans could start within five years

Researcher Dr Roger Hartl, neurosurgeon to the New York Giants football team, said: ‘The surgery prevents pain but often limits mobility, which may hinder someone who has an active lifestyle.’
So, working with experts at the Cornell University in New York, he created replacement discs for rats packed with cells taken from sheep spines.
The man-made discs were slightly thicker than the real thing, so stayed in place when transplanted into rats. They also quickly integrated with the spine, allowing the animals to bend, wiggle and run around, the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reports.
Dr Bonassar added: ‘If you watched the animals, you couldn’t tell there was any difference.
‘We’ve made discs that have the same structural components and behave just like the real ones.’