[Current overview of cartilage regeneration procedures]

Area of Science:

• Orthopedics
• Regenerative Medicine
• Biomaterials Science

Background:

• Cartilage defects are prevalent and challenging due to cartilage's limited self-repair capacity.
• Cartilage is an avascular, alymphatic, and non-innervated tissue.
• Effective treatment of cartilage lesions remains a clinical challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To provide an overview of current cartilage treatment options.
• To discuss the clinical outcomes associated with various cartilage repair strategies.
• To highlight the current state and future directions in cartilage repair.

Main Methods:

• Microfracture is the gold standard for small cartilage lesions.
• Autologous osteochondral transplantation system is effective for small osteochondral defects.
• Autologous membrane-induced chondrogenesis (AMIC) and membrane-assisted autologous chondrocyte implantation (MACI) are used for larger defects.

Main Results:

• Microfracture remains a primary treatment for small cartilage lesions.
• Autologous osteochondral transplantation effectively addresses small osteochondral defects.
• AMIC and MACI demonstrate success in treating larger cartilage defects.

Conclusions:

• Current cartilage repair strategies provide short- and mid-term clinical benefits.
• Limitations exist in existing cartilage repair methods.
• Further research and clinical studies are essential to improve long-term cartilage repair outcomes.