Adipose-Derived Stem Cells - A Promising Method of Therapy for Perianal Fistula: A Traditional Review

Background: Perianal fistula is a highly exhausting and difficult‐to‐treat condition and might negatively impact patients' quality of life. Recently, the application of mesenchymal stem cells has shown notable encouraging results in treating perianal fistula. Previous studies have shown that adult stem cells isolated from adipose tissue imply a subset of pluripotent mesodermal stem cells with a potential differentiation in myogenic, audiogenic, and chondrogenic types of cells. Additionally, human adipose-derived stem cells being multipotent cells, are capable of self-renewal and differentiation and have become apparent as crucial regulators of an immune response. It is well known that mesenchymal stem cells exist in almost all tissues and probably reduce inflammation through their intrinsic immunomodulatory properties; however, the exact mechanism of action in treating perianal fistula still under development. Aim: The present review aims to analyze the published scientific literature on adipose-derived MSCs in treating perianal fistula and clinical outcomes. Method: A literature search in PMC, PubMed, Google, and Google Scholar was carried out using the following keywords: "perianal fistula," “stem cells and perianal fistula” "adipose derived stem cells in perianal fistula," "mechanism of action of adipose derived stem cells" Study selection was in the language (English only), model (humans only), open accesses, and all types of studies were included as long as they were relevant to our study.