1. Articular Cartilage Defects of the Distal Femur in Children and Adolescents
- Author
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J. Bruce Moseley, Robert A. Arciero, Jon E. Browne, Christoph Erggelet, Lyle J. Micheli, Bert R. Mandelbaum, Freddie H. Fu, and Allen F. Anderson
- Subjects
Cartilage, Articular ,Male ,medicine.medical_specialty ,Adolescent ,Knee Joint ,Transplantation, Autologous ,Chondrocytes ,medicine ,Humans ,Orthopedics and Sports Medicine ,Femur ,Clinical significance ,Child ,Autologous chondrocyte implantation ,Retrospective Studies ,business.industry ,Cartilage ,Retrospective cohort study ,General Medicine ,medicine.disease ,Osteochondritis Dissecans ,Osteochondritis dissecans ,Surgery ,Radiography ,Transplantation ,Treatment Outcome ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Pediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health ,Female ,business ,Follow-Up Studies ,Cohort study - Abstract
Purpose Procedures aimed at biologically repairing cartilage injuries may have the greatest potential benefit in young patients because of their long-life expectancy and high-functional demands. Most cartilage-repair studies focus on older patient populations. This study assesses the outcomes of patients who were treated with autologous chondrocyte implantation before the age of 18. Study design This is a Registry-based, multicenter, observational, cohort study of 37 patients from whom follow-up data was prospectively collected. Patient-rated assessments of overall condition, pain, and swelling were measured using modified, 10-point scales of the Cincinnati Knee Rating System. Results Mean age was 16 years (11-17); 22 boys and 15 girls. Twenty-three patients underwent at least 1 cartilage repair procedure before the cartilage harvest, including 11 who had a marrow stimulation procedure. Fourteen patients were diagnosed with osteochondritis dessicans lesions. Thirty-five patients had single defects (mean size, 5.4 cm). Thirty-two patients completed self-evaluations at a minimum of 2 years after implantation (mean follow-up = 4.3 years). The mean change in scale scores measuring overall condition, pain, and swelling were 3.8, 4.1, and 3.4 points, respectively. One patient had an implantation that failed. Conclusions Results highlight significant clinical improvements from baseline to follow-up for 32 patients who submitted follow-up data, including 28 patients who reported a minimum 1-point improvement in the overall condition score. Clinical relevance These results suggest that autologous chondrocyte implantation may be an effective option for children and adolescents with large symptomatic chondral lesions of the distal femur.
- Published
- 2006
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