Providing A2M to Patients with Joint and Back Pain

Due to its large size, A2M cannot make it in to the joint in high enough concentrations in certain circumstances, which may lead to chronic pain, and collapse of the joint. A new technology allows doctors to use a highly concentrated injection of A2M into your joint to absorb the enzymes trying to digest cartilage.

It is important to note that A2M is not a platelet product, A2M circulates in the plasma portion of your blood. Be wary of claims that all PRP has A2M in it. Though your blood has some A2M, concentrated A2M can only be accomplished by a special concentrator. A simple water filter (called hemoconcentrator) will also not do the trick.



At ThriveMD, we have one of very few Alpha 2 Macroglobulin concentrators (pictured below) currently in use in the country. By collecting approximately 100cc’s of the patient’s blood and processing it through a multi-phase centrifugation and filtration system, a concentrated volume of A2M can be collected. This special, patented system selectively super concentrates A2M. The A2M produced by the concentrator can then be used for treatment inside of joints, degenerative discs, and into damaged soft tissues and areas of inflammation.

A2M is becoming an integral part of our regenerative therapies as part of a complete biologics program for the restoration of joints, prevention of arthritis and the treatment of low back pain.

In addition to A2M treatments for osteoarthritis, we are using A2M injections as an adjunct to stem cell injections in order to optimize the environment and maximize the potential of stem cell therapy.

Scientific evidence points to A2M to be the key to stopping osteoarhtritis at the molecular level. A2M is a Broad Spectrum Multi-Purpose Protease Inhibitor (powerful chemical in destroying proteins that cause arthritis) that captures and inactivates the three major chemicals that lead to joint breakdown and cartilage damage. Once these bad chemicals are trapped by A2M, the body can then quickly eliminate them.

A significant research study out of Brown University, in collaboration with the National Institute of Health, demonstrated that although the concentration of A2M in the joint is insufficient for joint protection, a joint injection of concentrated A2M provides cartilage protection in post-traumatic OA by stopping the progression of arthritis.

Not all joints respond to A2M but there is an excellent test to identify joints that will likely do well with an A2M treatment. This test is called fibronectin-aggrecan G3 complex test (FAC). It specifically identifies significant levels of the very specific protein which is highly diagnostic for arthritis.