PURPOSE OF THE STUDYThe aim of this retrospective study was to present a comprehensive overview of the causes of bone-tendon-bone (BTB) autograft failure after primary anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) reconstruction.
MATERIAL AnD METHODSBetween 2003 and 2013, we performed revision ACL replacement in 47 patients who had undergone primary BTB autograft ACL reconstruction in other hospitals. The group consisted of 16 women (aged 25 to 48 years) and 31 men (25 to 46 years). Surgery was performed on the right knee in 26 and on the left knee in 21 patients.
PURPOSE OF THE STUDYDamage to hyaline cartilage represents a serious problem due to its limited capacity of regeneration. Currently, there are several treatment options available. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the success rate of treatment of chondral and osteochondral defects of the knee joint using the modified AMIC (Autologous Matrix-Induced Chondrogenesis) technique, combining microfractures of the base and the implantation of the type I collagen-based cell-free implant over a two-year period.
MATERIAL AND METHODSThe prospective study of the success rate of treatment by the modified AMIC technique included 15 patients (13 men and 2 women) with a defect confirmed by MRI and appropriate indication criteria. The mean age at the time of implantation was 33.4 years (range 19-47 years). The mean size of a treated defect was 3.66 ± 1.71 cm2 (range 2.00-7.05 cm2). The clinical outcomes were monitored through the Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS), the Lysholm score and the Tegner activity scale preoperatively and subsequently at 6, 12 and 24 months postoperatively. Control MRI was conducted at 6, 12 and 18 months postoperatively. The MRI finding was evaluated using the Magnetic Observation of Cartilage Repair Tissue (MOCART) score.
RESULTSThe total KOOS score was 44.69 ± 7.71 preoperatively, while postoperatively it gradually increased up to 80.45 ± 8.97 (p < 0.001) at 24 months. The Lysholm score significantly rise from 43.47 ± 11.87 preoperatively to the mean value of 81.60 ± 13.07 (p < 0.001) at 24 months postoperatively. The preoperative Tegner score was 3.53 ± 1.41. At 24 months, there was a statistically significant increase to 5.40 ± 1.70 (p = 0.003). The mean MOCART score at 18 months postoperatively was 74.67 ± 14.08. At the end of the monitored period, a complete filling of the defect site by tissue was achieved in 73.33% patients. A complete integration with adjacent cartilage was seen in 66.67% patients and homogenous structure of newly formed tissue was reported in 80% of patients.
DISCUSSIONIn recent years, cell-free implants (the so-called scaffolds or carriers) have been used ever more frequently in treating localised cartilage defects. Their main effect should consist in helping the cells penetrate the defect site and support new cartilage tissue formation. In order to improve the efficacy of cell-free implants, a new therapeutic technique was developed, combining the microfractures of the base with the use of cell-free scaffold AMIC (Autologous Matrix-Induced Chondrogenesis). Our modification of the original AMIC technique consists in the use of a type I collagen-based scaffold instead of the original collagen membrane constituted by collagen type I and III. Based on the statistical processing of results, the modified AMIC technique has shown a statistically significant improvement compared to the preoperative values of the KOOS questionnaire and all its sub-groups, the Lysholm core and the Tegner activity scale. These good clinical outcomes correlate with the results obt...
PURPOSE OF THE STUDYThis study is a component part of the project focused on cartilage imaging after the treatment of a defect. It aims to compare the evaluation of postoperative status performed by two radiologists with the use of 2D MOCART scoring system and to determine whether this method is a reliable tool for the evaluation of postoperative changes.
MATERIAL AND METHODSThe study evaluated 78 MRI examinations from 25 patients (one patient had two defects treated), each of whom underwent 3 MRI examinations at 6, 12 and 18 months after surgery. The MRI examinations were performed on Philips Ingenia 3T scanner with 8-channel knee coil, in line with the routine protocol (coronal, sagittal and transversal PD SPAIR, coronal T1, sagittal PD HR, sagittal bFFE). The MRI examinations were evaluated independently by two radiologists using the 2D MOCART (Magnetic Resonance Observation of Cartilage Repair Tissue) score.
RESULTSThe raters agreed in a total of 592 of 702 evaluations, therefore the inter-rater reliability is high, namely 84.3%. The highest inter-rater agreement was in assessing subchondral lamina and subchondral bone. Whereas the lowest inter-rater agreement was achieved in assessing effusion. The total score showed a very strong and statistically significant correlation (r = 0.893). In eight out of nine questions there was no statistically significant difference between the raters. A significant difference was seen only in the assessment of repair tissue structure. Excellent reliability of the total score was also confirmed by the intraclass correlation coefficient.
DISCUSSIONThe high degree of agreement in assessing the signal intensity of repair tissue was considered very positive as it is generally viewed as the major pitfall in evaluations. On the contrary, subjective perception was confirmed in the evaluation of tissue homogeneity, especially when comparing homogeneity with the adjacent tissue in close vicinity that could have changed already. Surprisingly, the lowest inter-rater concordance was reported in the evaluation of effusion, where in some cases, its volume was underestimated, when traced back retrospectively.
CONCLUSIONSThe results of this study confirm that despite certain doubts regarding subjective perception of some of the evaluation criteria the 2D MOCART scoring system is a very good and objective tool to evaluate the effects of surgery.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.