{"id":46085,"date":"2019-07-15T09:00:25","date_gmt":"2019-07-15T14:00:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/?p=46085"},"modified":"2019-07-08T08:25:19","modified_gmt":"2019-07-08T13:25:19","slug":"%ef%bb%bfhow-beef-may-save-your-life","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/?p=46085","title":{"rendered":"\ufeffHow beef may save your life"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Megan Rayl<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Littleton, Colo., junior<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

For the past decade,\ncardiovascular disease has been the top killer of individuals in the United States,\naccording to the Center for Disease Control. This means it is almost inevitable\nthat you have known someone who has been impacted or even died of\ncardiovascular disease. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What would you think if\nsomeone told you that beef byproducts could actually help improve the health of\nindividuals with cardiovascular disease?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cardiovascular disease is a\nresult of poor health decisions and is worsened by certain genetics. A heart\nthat has been affected by cardiovascular disease has physical damage to the\ntissues, which eventually result in the inability of the heart to properly\nfunction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Individuals who are\ndiagnosed with cardiovascular disease may be prescribed medications, but these\nonly alleviate the symptoms. The only way to improve the condition of the heart\nis to attack the problem right at the source, repairing the damaged tissues. While\nheart transplants are available, they are expensive, risky, and difficult to\nobtain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAs of April 17, 2018, over\n4,000 people across the U.S are on the waiting list for donor hearts,\u201d said\nMark Drazner, M.D.  In most cases, transplants are not an option, rather\nrepairing the heart is the best bet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Synthetic materials are\navailable to repair damaged tissues, but there are some potential issues with\nthis solution. In studies done by cardiologist Dr. Joseph Wu, the\nbiocompatibility potential of synthetic materials is drastically low. This\nmeans that these synthetic materials can become toxic as they break down over\ntime, can cause blood clotting, and can negatively affect the oxygen levels in\nthe blood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The most recently\ndiscovered solution, coming out of the Stanford Cardiology Research lab,\ninvolves using bovine tissues in order to repair the hearts of individuals\ndiagnosed with cardiovascular disease. While synthetic materials may last\nlonger that bovine tissues, the potential for non-biocompatibility makes bovine\ntissues the best choice for many individuals.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many different bovine\ntissues can be used to repair cardiovascular tissues. Of the more popular\nmaterials used for reparation is the submucosa of the small intestine. With\nproper preparation, this tissue can be used for pericardial reconstruction and\ncarotid repair. The submucosa of the small intestine offers high\nbiocompatibility and low risk for calcification and encapsulation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the promising\nattributes of bovine small intestine submucosa is its promotion of cell\nmigration, which leads to local tissue regeneration. In other words, using\nbovine small intestine submucosa could potentially cause the hearts of\nindividuals affected by cardiovascular disease to repair the damaged heart\ntissues over time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Another bovine tissue that\nhas been used to repair damage from cardiovascular disease is the pericardium,\na fibrous sac that surrounds the heart in bovines as well as other mammals. The\nbovine pericardium has been used to repair the cardiac wall and valves, and\nfully seal up a pericardial closure. The fibers that make up the bovine\npericardium are fairly elastic, which allows for conformity to any structure.\nThe bovine pericardium also resists most infections because of its simple yet\nstrong and consistent makeup as well as its high collagen levels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The final most common\nbovine part used for treating cardiovascular disease is the heart valves.\nGenerally, people use mechanical valves, but these have been shown to cause\nblood clotting, and individuals with mechanical valves generally have to be on\nblood thinners for the rest of their lives. This can cause other problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In order to avoid blood\nthinners, we turn to valves from the bovine heart. Bovine valves last 15 to 20\nyears and do not require patients to take any sort of blood thinners. For older\npatients, a bovine valve is recommended over a mechanical valve due to the\namount of time that the valve will be used. Younger patients receiving bovine\nvalves may have to have multiple replacements over their lifespans, but they\nwill not have to be on blood thinners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All these bovine tissues\ncan be used to treat cardiovascular disease in humans, but how do we harvest\nthem? Each year in the United States, about 32.2 million cattle are slaughtered\nfor beef production. The small intestine submucosa, pericardia, and heart\nvalves from these cattle can be used for treating individuals diagnosed with\ncardiovascular disease. Companies such as W&G Marketing Co. obtain these\nbyproducts as well as others and process them in order to make them usable in\nhumans and medicine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In order for these products\nto be used in human medicine, they must be cleaned of all bovine blood and\ncells. They must then be cut down to the proper size and sanitized. These are\nsimple processes, and it is possible for a pericardium to be in a cow one\nmorning and in a patient recovering from surgery the next.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As medical professionals\ncontinue to do more research regarding the use of bovine tissues in order to\ntreat humans, they will strive to find more tissues that can be used as well as\nfind ways to make these tissues last longer. At the end of the day, the beef\nbyproducts discussed could save the lives of your loved ones and potentially\neven you.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Megan Rayl, a 2017 Arapahoe High School graduate, is majoring in animal science at Fort Hays State University.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This essay on a topic in agriculture was researched and written by a student as part of a project in a senior animal science class at Fort Hays State University. The project director is Dr. Brittany Howell, associate professor of agriculture, bjhowell@fhsu.edu<\/a>, 785-628-4015.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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