Adipose-Derived Stromal Cells (ASC's) for Pressure Ulcers

January 12, 2026 updated by: Houssam Farres, M.D., Mayo Clinic

A Pilot Study: Evaluating the Safety and Feasibility of Using Autologous Adipose-Derived Stromal Cells From Stromal Vascular Fraction (SVF) on Adults With Pressure Ulcers or Diabetic Foot Ulcers

This pilot study of 12 patients will test the safety and efficacy of applying autologous, adipose-derived stromal cells (ASCs), uncultured, on a Stage III or IV pressure ulcer or diabetic foot ulcers. Patients will undergo a minimal risk liposuction procedure to withdraw 50-100 cc of adipose tissue. The tissue would be processed to extract the stromal layer of cells that contain stem cells. The ASCs would be injected into a fibrin sealant to be applied to the wound. Patients would be followed for 6 weeks to assess wound healing and tolerance of the treatment.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Enrolling by invitation

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Wound healing for Stage III and IV pressure ulcers or diabetic foot ulcers can take four to six weeks or longer and cost upwards of $40,000 to treat. Past studies have shown that adipose tissue contains progenitor cells or regenerative cells that can release multiple angiogenic growth factors and cytokines including vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and chemokine stromal cell-derived factor-1 (SDF-1). A current literature review revealed that there is research related to use of stem cells to enhance wound healing, in particular with ischemic or radiation-induced ulcers. However, there is limited research completed on use of stem cells or ASCs with pressure ulcers. The goal is to heal pressure ulcers faster and prevent further complications using the patient's own natural ASCs.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
12

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Phase 1

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Florida
      • Jacksonville, Florida, United States, 32224
        • Mayo Clinic in Florida

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria

  • Males and females
  • Stage III pressure ulcers measuring 5 cc - 36 cc in volume (as measured by filling the wound with Normal Saline).
  • Inpatient or outpatient treatment of pressure ulcers
  • Diabetic Foot Ulcer Stage 1 or 2 of any size

  • Co-morbidities may include:

    • Peripheral Vascular Disease (PVD)
    • Coronary Artery Disease (CAD)
    • Chronic Renal Disease (CRD)
    • Chronic Liver Disease (CLD)
    • Hypertension (HTN)
    • Diabetes
  • The ability of subjects to give appropriate consent or have an appropriate representative available to do so
  • The ability of subjects to return for weekly wound assessments

Exclusion Criteria

  • Patients with allergies to TISSEEL, Tegaderm, or silicon
  • Diabetics with poor glucose metabolic control (HbA1c > 9)
  • Target wounds that are in close proximity to potential cancerous lesions
  • Patients who require Negative Pressure Wound Therapy (NPWT), limb amputation, or surgical intervention at the target wound at the time of screening
  • Wounds located on the face
  • Patients with Stage 5 or 6 Peripheral Vascular disease (specifically, wounds that are caused by peripheral vascular disease such as leg ulcers)
  • Wounds caused by diabetes mellitus (diabetic foot ulcers).
  • BMI of <16 Clinical signs of critical colonization or local infection
  • Prolonged (> 6 months) use of steroids
  • Patients on active regimen of chemotherapy
  • Patients receiving radiation in proximity of wound
  • Decompensated chronic liver disease

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Experimental
Liposuction will be done to extract 50-100 cc of adipose tissue which will be processed to obtain the stromal cells. The adipose-derived stromal cells will be injected into a fibrin sealant applicator and applied to the wound (intervention), Patients will receive 5.0x106 ASCs per cubic centimeter of wound area. The wound will be dressed with an occlusive dressing and soft silicone dressing. The dressing will remain in place for one week (minimally, 3 days). Follow-up will occur weekly for 6 weeks.
Biological: Adipose-derived stromal cells
Adipose-derived stromal cells contain stem cells which have been successful in enhancing wound healing. The product used as the carrier is a fibrin sealant called TISSEEL. Pre-pilot testing was done to verify viability of the stromal cells for up to 72 hours in the fibrin sealant.
Other Names:
  • ASC's
Drug: Adipose-derived stromal cells

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Free of wound infection
Time Frame: one week
Symptoms include fever along with new or increasing pain, erythema, local warmth, swelling, purulent discharge, and/or malodor
one week

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Liposuction procedure without complication
Time Frame: one week
Signs of adverse reactions to the liposuction procedure include an allergy to the Hunstad solution, infection at the puncture wound site or risk of bleeding at the puncture wound site. Risks include bleeding or infection at the site and bruising for approximately one week. No adverse consequences of fluid overload have been associated with low volume liposuction.
one week
Improved wound healing
Time Frame: weekly observation for 6 weeks
Wound healing is greater than 20% healing within two weeks documented by measurement of the wound bed or wound healing to less than the dermal layer documented by photography and agreement of healing between research nurse and wound physician consultant. Would not expect deterioration to a more severe level of tissue injury
weekly observation for 6 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Mayo Clinic

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Houssam Farres, MD, Mayo Clinic

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Helpful Links

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
July 1, 2015

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
December 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
December 1, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
February 18, 2015

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
February 24, 2015

First Posted (Estimated)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
March 3, 2015

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimated)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
January 14, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
January 12, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
January 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 14-002855

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

Cookie Settings

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. For more details carefully read our Privacy and Cookies Policy. ...>>>You can change your preferences or withdraw your consent at any time by deleting the cookies from your website or computer as described in the policy. Please accept it and choose your preferences by ticking the corresponding boxes in the "Manage Settings" section below. Please carefully read our Terms of Service before you proceed with using any part of this website.
«Manage Settings