Safety and Feasibility of Autologous Culture Expanded Adipose Derived Mesenchymal Stromal Cells in the Treatment of Painful Knee Osteoarthritis

Interventions to alter the natural course of osteoarthritis (OA) in the knee are elusive and joint replacement remains the definitive management for refractory, end-stage disease. The Mayo Clinic has a large, ongoing experience using autologous adipose derived mesenchymal stromal cells (AMSCs) for the treatment of a variety of other diseases under INDs. Thus far, the treatments have been well tolerated. These data along with the investigators' pre-clinical animal studies and published experiences using related approaches lead the investigators to believe that this approach provides a reasonable safety profile to treat patients with refractory painful knee OA. The purpose of the current study is to investigate the safety and feasibility of single and multiple injections of autologous, culture expanded AMSCs in subjects with painful, refractory knee OA. Subjects with unilaterally symptomatic mild to severe knee OA will be enrolled based on satisfaction of inclusion and exclusion criteria.