Purpose: Osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) of the patella is a very rare affliction. The aim of this case series is to evaluate the effectiveness of the Nanofractured Autologous Matrix-Induced Chondrogenesis (NAMIC) technique for the treatment of OCD in young adults.
Methods: Five consecutive patients with patellar osteochondral lesions treated with NAMIC were prospectively studied. There were 4 males and 1 female with a mean age of 15.2 years, ranging from 12 to 18 years. Clinically, they presented pain when going up and down stairs or squatting, effusion, swelling and functional limitation. The International Cartilage Repair Society (ICRS) grade was III in 4 patients and IV in 1 patient. Patients were functionally evaluated with the Lysholm knee score, the Tegner Activity Score (TAS) and the Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) and radiologically using the Magnetic resonance Observation of Cartilage Repair Tissue (MOCART) score.
Results: All the scores significantly improved two years after surgery with respect to pre-operative values (Lysholm score from 63.8 ± 3.9 before surgery to 91 ± 3.2 at 2 years; Tegner activity score from 3.6 ± 0.5 to 8.2 ± 0.8 and the KOOS score from 45.2 ± 2.6 to 91.2 ± 2.4). Both the X-rays and the Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) showed good joint regularity with an average MOCART of 80 ± 7.1/100.
Conclusions: Treatment of juvenile patellar osteochondritis dissecans with the NAMIC technique seems to be a reliable technique in the short term to restore the patella joint surface and obtain good functional results.
Keywords: Adolescent; Autologous matrix induced chondrogenesis; Knee; Nanofracture; Osteochondritis dissecans; Patella.
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