Articular Cartilage Defects of the Knee

Articular cartilage is critical in the proper function of the knee as it allows the joint to accommodate multiplanar motion and loading. However, articular cartilage has limited intrinsic healing capacity and injury to the cartilage surface can cause pain, loss of function, and predisposition for the development of osteoarthritis. Evaluation for cartilage injury should be met with a step-wise, multimodal treatment approach with the goal of limiting pain and preventing disease progression. If conservative treatment is unsuccessful, a variety of palliative, reparative, or restorative surgical interventions can be considered. Surgical decision-making is dependent on multiple factors, including patient-specific demographics and variables, goals of treatment, chondral lesion size, depth, and grade.