2022, Vol. 26 ›› Issue (34): 5525-5533

Hydrogel-based growth factors and drugs in the treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration: problems and prospects

Zhao Yunan1, Zhang Haobo1, Sun Tao2, Yang Xuejun3   

Abstract: BACKGROUND: The number of patients with low back pain due to intervertebral disc degeneration is increasing year by year. However, both surgical and conservative treatments have their limitations. In recent years, new regenerative therapy using hydrogel as carrier has brought new ideas for the treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration.  
OBJECTIVE: To summarize the repair effects of various growth factors and drugs loaded on different types of hydrogels on the early degeneration of intervertebral discs.
METHODS: The articles about intervertebral disc degeneration and regeneration therapy and molecular biology published on PubMed, CNKI, and Wanfang databases were searched by computer. The period was set from January 1999 to May 2021. The search terms were “intervertebral disc, intervertebral disc degeneration, hydrogels, growth factors, chemokines, drugs, regeneration, repair” in Chinese and English. Summary was further conducted after screening out 87 articles.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: (1) Natural hydrogel can be gradually degraded in the intervertebral disc tissue to become the matrix of the intervertebral disc tissue or be directly absorbed, which reflects its superior biocompatibility, but it also needs to restore the height of the intervertebral disc in the early stage of the treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration to play a supporting role, thereby restoring the biomechanics of the spine. (2) Currently, there are still many problems that need to be solved urgently in the research of active molecules such as growth factors and drugs using hydrogels as carriers to treat intervertebral disc degeneration, including most of the current research results from animal experiments, how to safely and effectively deliver hydrogel composites into the intervertebral disc, and whether the problem of low back pain in patients can be solved immediately in the early stage of treatment. (3) Composite hydrogels have become an important direction for the future development of the treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration due to their superior biomechanical properties and good biocompatibility. Platelet-rich plasma is also a hotspot for the future treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration due to its rich content of various growth factors. (4) Due to the diversity of its materials and polymerization methods, hydrogels can provide a broader application prospect for tissue engineering and medicine, and various growth factors and drugs carried in different types of hydrogels can provide a new idea of great significance in the repair and regeneration treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration.
Key words: intervertebral disc, intervertebral disc degeneration, hydrogels, growth factors, chemokines, drugs, regeneration, repair