'Miracle' drug will heal old bones

Apr 15 2009

A wonder drug is allowing wheelchair bound patients to stand up and walk again.

The drug called teriparatide or Forteo is "turning back the clock", helping older people's bones to heal like children's.

It can halve the time that broken backs and collar bones mend.

The drug was originally prescribed to help with osteoporosis - the weakening of bones in older people that can lead to frequent breaks.

Doctors found it had remarkable success. In trials of 145 patients, 93 per cent showed significant improvement after only eight weeks.

Scientists began to wonder if they had stumbled on a treatment for people with painful breaks like broken backs or collar bones.

Preliminary clinical trials have revealed that the drug boosts the production of bone stems cells, helping broken bones to mend in half the time.

Immobile

Patients confined to wheelchairs have been able to walk again because their broken bones finally healed.

Doctors believe the treatment has huge potential, especially for patients with broken backs who face months of pain being kept immobile as their fractures heal.

It could also rejuvenate older people, whose bones take much longer to heal and for those who find their breaks won't mend.

Dr Edward Puzas, of the University of Rochester, New York, headed the clinical trials.

He said: "We believe we have found a way to turn the clock back on fractures through a simple in-body stem cell therapy." Colleague Dr Susan Bukata added: "It was amazing to see significant healing in fractures and realise patients with severe osteoporosis were pain-free."

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