Regenerative medicine: a primer for paediatricians.

Regenerative medicine is a multidisciplinary field concerned with the replacement, repair or restoration of injured tissues. Cell therapy and tissue engineering are part of the broader remit of regenerative medicine. The ultimate aim is to provide safe and efficient therapies for a large number of clinical conditions. Novel regenerative therapies are already in use in initial clinical trials. The main components of regenerative medicine are cells and specially designed materials. A vast variety of cells types are currently used including: adult and stem cells. Equally a large number of natural and man-made materials have been investigated. Despite of considerable advances many challenges lie ahead. These are summarised in this review article. The field is slowly maturing and the initial unhelpful hype has been replaced by a more measured, mature and realistic outlook.