Repairing Osteochondral Defects of Critical Size Using Multiple Costal Grafts

Abstract

Objective:To investigate the feasibility of repairing osteochondral defects of critical size by performing mosaicplasty using multiple sliced costal cartilage grafts, which enables repair of extensively injured knees using grafts from a single rib.Design:Critical osteochondral defects were prepared on the femoral groove of skeletally mature Japanese white rabbits. Costal cartilage grafts from a single rib were harvested and sliced into multiple segments (approximately 3-5 mm in length). The defects were left untreated or repaired by performing mosaicplasty using costal cartilage grafts (with or without a longitudinal cut along the middle). At 4 and 12 weeks after transplantation, International Cartilage Repair Society macroscopic and histological grading was performed.Results:The macroscopic score and visual histological score were significantly higher in the repaired groups than in the untreated group at 4 and 12 weeks after surgery. Histological continuous integration between grafted costal cartilage and host bone was observed in both repaired groups.Conclusions:The findings suggest that costal cartilage might be a useful alternative source for chondral grafting. We were able to repair large osteochondral defects by performing mosaicplasty using multiple sliced costal cartilage grafts from a single rib.

Management of cardiorespiratory function of rabbits by a customized chest drain: An experimental study

“…Nevertheless, the pleural tear occurred accidentally due to the fragile pleural membrane [ 15 ]. Moreover, the pleura’s intimate attachment to the costochondral junction’s inner surface was observed [ 16 ]. However, the less traumatized costal cartilage harvesting technique was used to spare the perichondrial layer that reduced the donor site morbidity than the conventional method [ 11 ].…”

“…It is anatomically evident that the rabbit’s pleural membrane is distinctly fragile [ 15 ]. According to Du et al [ 16 ], animal studies on the Japanese white male rabbits of 20 weeks of age discovered the reason for pleural injury during CCGs isolation; it was due to the intimate attachment of pleura to the inner surface of the rib around the costochondral junction [ 16 ]. Indeed, during an experimental study on rabbits, there is a chance of accidental exposure of the thoracic cavity and the penetrating injury to the pleural membrane.…”

A Rabbit Femoral Condyle Defect Model for Assessment of Osteochondral Tissue Regeneration

“…IHC, although not as commonly used as the aforementioned stains, is also used for visualizing the distribution of specific extracellular matrix (ECM) components such as type I and II collagen. 23,28,45 In the case of osteochondral tissue regeneration, IHC can be a powerful method to visualize whether the regenerated cartilage is hyaline (majority type II collagen) or fibrous (type I collagen).…”

Autologous costal chondral transplantation and costa-derived chondrocyte implantation: emerging surgical techniques

“…Histological findings revealed that the intergraft gap between separated costal cartilage was filled by fibrous tissue, and the cleft between transplanted cartilage and host bone was interlinked by newly formed woven bone. 61 The junction and union between transplanted cartilage and recipient tissue is very important for functional recovery. 62 Alternatively, a cancellous iliac bone block could be isolated and implanted onto the surface of costal cartilage to yield an osteochondral complex.…”