Articular Cartilage Surgery

Cartilage Grafting

Cartilage Restoration

Articular Cartilage surgery (Micro-Fracture/ mosaicplasty etc)

The knee like all joints is normally covered with a very smooth lining of articular cartilage. When 2 smooth surfaces lined by cartilage rub against each other there is minimal friction and this allows us to move our joint quickly and smoothly without pain for most of our lives.

If the lining cartilage is damaged then you no longer have 2 smooth surfaces and using the knee joint can cause pain swelling and stiffness. While we cannot perfectly replace the cartilage that is damaged there are things that can be done to improve the joint after an injury to the cartilage. Firstly all loose or damaged cartilage can be removed and any loose flaps of cartilage can be trimmed so that they do not rub inside the knee or cause problems. Plugs of cartilage can be taken from one part of the knee and transferred to another using a device like an apple corer. The cartilage is taken from an area of the knee where it is not needed and placed where the knee is injured. This technique is called mosaicplasty or OATS (Osteochondralautograft transfer system).

Another way to bring new cartilage into a damaged area is to drill small holes in the bone. This causes bleeding at this site and the blood clot that forms brings new cartilage cells which can help heal the damaged area. This technique is called microfracture.

For a video demonstrating microfracture please click this link.