Lesion Size Does Not Predict Outcomes in Fresh Osteochondral Allograft Transplantation

2018 ◽  
Vol 46 (4) ◽  
pp. 900-907 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luis E.P. Tírico ◽  
Julie C. McCauley ◽  
Pamela A. Pulido ◽  
William D. Bugbee

Background: Cartilage repair algorithms use lesion size to choose surgical techniques when selecting a cartilage repair procedure. The association of fresh osteochondral allograft (OCA) size with graft survivorship and subjective patient outcomes is still unknown. Purpose: To determine if lesion size (absolute or relative) affects outcomes after OCA transplantation. Study Design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: The study included 156 knees in 143 patients who underwent OCA transplantation from 1998 to 2014 for isolated femoral condyle lesions. The mean age was 29.6 ± 11.4 years, and 62.9% were male. The majority of patients (62.2%) presented for cartilage repair because of osteochondritis dissecans. The mean graft area, used as a surrogate for absolute size of the lesion, was 6.4 cm2 (range, 2.3-11.5 cm2). The relative size of the lesion was calculated as the tibial width ratio (TWR; ratio of graft area to tibial width) and affected femoral condyle ratio (AFCR; ratio of graft area to affected femoral condyle width) using preoperative radiographs. All patients had a minimum follow-up of 2 years. Further surgical procedures were documented, and graft failure was defined as revision OCA transplantation or conversion to arthroplasty. International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) pain, function, and total scores were obtained. Satisfaction with OCA transplantation was assessed. Results: The mean follow-up among patients with grafts remaining in situ was 6.0 years (range, 1.9-16.5 years). The OCA failure rate was 5.8%. Overall survivorship of the graft was 97.2% at 5 years and 93.5% at 10 years. No difference in postoperative outcomes between groups was found in absolute or relative size. Change in IKDC scores (from preoperative to latest follow-up) was greater for knees with large lesions compared to knees with small lesions, among all measurement methods. Overall satisfaction with the results of OCA transplantation was 89.8%. Conclusion: The size of the lesion, either absolute or relative, does not influence outcomes after OCA transplantation for isolated femoral condyle lesions of the knee.

2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (10) ◽  
pp. 232596711773054 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luís E.P. Tírico ◽  
Samuel A. Early ◽  
Julie C. McCauley ◽  
William D. Bugbee

Background: Spontaneous osteonecrosis of the knee (SONK) is a clinical entity identified by acute knee pain usually associated with joint effusion, with radiographic findings of a radiolucent defect on the weightbearing area of the femoral condyle. Conservative treatment is initially undertaken; however, surgical procedures are often necessary. Historically, surgical options have included core decompression, cartilage repair, high tibial osteotomy, or joint arthroplasty. Few studies in the literature have reported the use of fresh osteochondral allograft (OCA) for the treatment of SONK lesions. Hypothesis: OCA transplantation is an effective treatment for SONK lesions on the medial femoral condyle. Study Design: Case series; Level of evidence, 4. Methods: A case series was analyzed of 7 patients treated with OCA for large SONK lesions of the medial femoral condyle with a minimum 4-year follow-up. All patients experienced failure of at least 6 months of conservative treatment and declined arthroplasty as the form of definitive treatment for medial femoral condyle lesion. All patients underwent OCA of the medial femoral condyle. Mean lesion size was 4.6 cm2 (range, 3.24-6.25 cm2), with a mean condylar width of 41.7 mm (range, 35.4-48.6 mm), resulting in a median proportion (lesion size/condylar width) of 56.8% (range, 32.7%-62.6%). The median surface allograft area was 5.1 cm2 (range, 3.2-6.3 cm2). Results: The median follow-up was 7.1 years (range, 4.5-14.1 years). No patient had additional surgery following OCA transplant; the allograft failure rate was 0%. Subjective outcome scores from the International Knee Documentation Committee, Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score, and modified Merle d’Aubigné-Postel scale improved from preoperative assessment to the latest follow-up. All patients were extremely satisfied with the results of the OCA transplant. Conclusion: Fresh OCA transplantation demonstrated excellent efficacy, durability, and satisfaction in this group of patients with isolated stage 2 and 3 SONK lesions who had experienced failure of conservative treatment. Fresh osteochondral allografts are an attractive method for surgical management of selected patients with spontaneous osteonecrosis of the knee.


2007 ◽  
Vol 35 (6) ◽  
pp. 907-914 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bryan C. Emmerson ◽  
Simon Görtz ◽  
Amir A. Jamali ◽  
Christine Chung ◽  
David Amiel ◽  
...  

Background The treatment of osteochondritis dissecans in the adult knee can be challenging. As part of our comprehensive treatment program, fresh osteochondral allografts have been used in the surgical management of osteochondritis dissecans of the femoral condyle. Hypothesis Fresh osteochondral allograft transplantation will provide a successful surgical treatment for osteochondritis dissecans of the femoral condyle. Study Design Case series; Level of evidence, 4. Methods Sixty-six knees in 64 patients underwent fresh osteochondral allografting for the treatment of osteochondritis dissecans. Each patient was evaluated both preoperatively and postoperatively using an 18-point modified D'Aubigné and Postel scale. Subjective assessment was performed using a patient questionnaire. Radiographs were evaluated preoperatively and postoperatively. Results Mean follow-up was 7.7 years (range, 2-22 years). There were 45 men and 19 women with a mean age of 28.6 years (range, 15-54 years). All patients had undergone previous surgery. Forty-one lesions involved the medial femoral condyle, and 25 involved the lateral femoral condyle. All were osteochondritis dissecans type 3 or 4. The mean allograft size was 7.5 cm2. One knee was lost to follow-up. Of the remaining 65 knees, 47 (72%) were rated good/excellent, 7 (11%) were rated fair, and 1 (2%) was rated poor. Ten patients (15%) underwent reoperation. The mean clinical score improved from 13.0 preoperatively to 16.4 postoperatively (P < .01). Fifty-nine of 64 patients completed questionnaires. Subjective knee function improved from a mean of 3.4 to 8.4 on a 10-point scale (P < .01). Conclusion With greater than 70% good or excellent results, fresh osteochondral allograft transplantation is a successful surgical treatment for osteochondritis dissecans of the femoral condyle.


2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (3_suppl) ◽  
pp. 2325967118S0000 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luis E. Tirico ◽  
Julie C. McCauley ◽  
Pamela Pulido ◽  
William Bugbee

Objectives: Cartilage repair for femoral condyle lesions comprise the majority of the biological procedures performed in the knee joint. Treatment options have evolved but there is still uncertainty regarding longer-term clinical outcomes with current surgical techniques. The objective of this study was to evaluate outcome of osteochondral allograft (OCA) transplantation utilizing dowel type grafts for the treatment of isolated femoral condyle cartilage lesions. Methods: This study comprised 187 patients (200 knees) who underwent OCA transplantation for isolated cartilage lesions on the femoral condyle between 1999 and 2014. Mean patient age was 31.1 ± 11.6 years, 62.6% were male, and the medial femoral condyle was affected in 69% of the knees. For all cases, dowel technique was used with commercially available surgical instruments utilizing the minimum amount of bone necessary for fixation (modern technique). A single graft was used in 145 knees (72.5%), two grafts were used in 55 knees (27.5%). Average allograft area was 6.3 cm2 (range, 2.3 to 13 cm2) and graft thickness was 6.5 ± 1.4 mm (cartilage and bone combined). All patients had a minimum follow-up of 2 years. Evaluation included International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) scores; Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS), and patient satisfaction. The frequency and type of further surgery was assessed. OCA failure was defined as a further surgery that involved removal of the allograft. An additional subgroup analysis on location comparing medial to lateral femoral condyle grafts was performed Results: The average follow-up was 6.7 years (range, 1.9 to 16.5 years). IKDC scores improved from preoperatively to latest follow-up for pain (5.5 to 2.7), function (3.4 to 7.3) and total scores (43.7 to 76.2) (all p<0.001). KOOS pain and activities of daily living scores improved from 66.5 to 85.3 and 74.5 to 91.1, respectively (p<0.001). At latest follow-up, outcome scores did not differ by location on the femoral condyle (Table 1). The majority of patients (89%) reported satisfaction with the results of the OCA transplantation. Further surgery was required in 52 knees (26%), of which 16 knees (8% of entire cohort) were defined as OCA failures (4 OCA revisions, 1 arthrosurface, 6 unicompartmental knee arthroplasties, and 5 total knee arthroplasties). The median time to failure was 4.9 years (range, 0.3 to 16.1 years). Survivorship of the OCA was 95.6% at 5 years and 91.2% at 10 years (Figure 1). Conclusion: OCA transplantation utilizing a modern technique is a valuable procedure for the treatment of femoral condyle cartilage lesions, resulting in significant improvement in clinical scores, high patient satisfaction, and low reoperation and clinical failure rates. These results are similar or better than any other cartilage repair procedure for isolated femoral condyle lesions. [Table: see text][Figure: see text]


Cartilage ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 194760352110219
Author(s):  
Danielle H. Markus ◽  
Anna M. Blaeser ◽  
Eoghan T. Hurley ◽  
Brian J. Mannino ◽  
Kirk A. Campbell ◽  
...  

Objective The purpose of the current study is to evaluate the clinical and radiographic outcomes at early to midterm follow-up between fresh precut cores versus hemi-condylar osteochondral allograft (OCAs) in the treatment of symptomatic osteochondral lesions. Design A retrospective review of patients who underwent an OCA was performed. Patient matching between those with OCA harvested from an allograft condyle/patella or a fresh precut allograft core was performed to generate 2 comparable groups. The cartilage at the graft site was assessed with use of a modified Magnetic Resonance Observation of Cartilage Repair Tissue (MOCART) scoring system and patient-reported outcomes were collected. Results Overall, 52 total patients who underwent OCA with either fresh precut OCA cores ( n = 26) and hemi-condylar OCA ( n = 26) were pair matched at a mean follow-up of 34.0 months (range 12 months to 99 months). The mean ages were 31.5 ± 10.7 for fresh precut cores and 30.9 ± 9.8 for hemi-condylar ( P = 0.673). Males accounted for 36.4% of the overall cohort, and the mean lesion size for fresh precut OCA core was 19.6 mm2 compared to 21.2 mm2 for whole condyle ( P = 0.178). There was no significant difference in patient-reported outcomes including Visual Analogue Scale, Knee Injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score for Joint Replacement, and Tegner ( P > 0.5 for each), or in MOCART score (69.2 vs. 68.3, P = 0.93). Conclusions This study found that there was no difference in patient-reported clinical outcomes or MOCART scores following OCA implantation using fresh precut OCA cores or size matched condylar grafts at early to midterm follow-up.


2017 ◽  
Vol 45 (10) ◽  
pp. 2260-2266 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth J. Schmidt ◽  
Luís E. Tírico ◽  
Julie C. McCauley ◽  
William D. Bugbee

Background: Regulatory concerns and the popularity of fresh osteochondral allograft (OCA) transplantation have led to a need for prolonged viable storage of osteochondral grafts. Tissue culture media allow a longer storage time but lead to chondrocyte death within the tissue. The long-term clinical consequence of prolonged storage is unknown. Hypothesis: Patients transplanted with OCAs with a shorter storage time would have lower failure rates and better clinical outcomes than those transplanted with OCAs with prolonged storage. Study Design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: A matched-pair study was performed of 75 patients who received early release grafts (mean storage, 6.3 days [range, 1-14 days]) between 1997 and 2002, matched 1:1 by age, diagnosis, and graft size, with 75 patients who received late release grafts (mean storage time, 20.0 days [range, 16-28 days]) from 2002 to 2008. The mean age was 33.5 years, and the median graft size was 6.3 cm2. All patients had a minimum 2-year follow-up. Evaluations included pain, satisfaction, function, failures, and reoperations. Outcome measures included the modified Merle d’Aubigné-Postel (18-point) scale, International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) form, and Knee Society function (KS-F) scale. Clinical failure was defined as revision OCA transplantation or conversion to arthroplasty. Results: Among patients with grafts remaining in situ, the mean follow-up was 11.9 years (range, 2.0-16.8 years) and 7.8 years (range, 2.3-11.1 years) for the early and late release groups, respectively. OCA failure occurred in 25.3% (19/75) of patients in the early release group and 12.0% (9/75) of patients in the late release group ( P = .036). The median time to failure was 3.5 years (range, 1.7-13.8 years) and 2.7 years (range, 0.3-11.1 years) for the early and late release groups, respectively. The 5-year survivorship of OCAs was 85% for the early release group and 90% for the late release group ( P = .321). No differences in postoperative pain and function were noted between the groups. Ninety-one percent of the early release group and 93% of the late release group reported satisfaction with OCA results. Conclusion: The transplantation of OCA tissue with prolonged storage is safe and effective for large osteochondral lesions of the knee and has similar clinical outcomes and satisfaction to the transplantation of early release grafts.


2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (7_suppl4) ◽  
pp. 2325967118S0013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelsey Davidson ◽  
Nathan L. Grimm ◽  
Melissa A. Christino ◽  
S. Clifton Willimon ◽  
Michael T. Busch

Objectives: Osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) is an idiopathic alteration of the subchondral bone which may lead to early osteoarthritis. This condition is commonly seen in the knee and is more common in young, athletic individuals. Several techniques have been developed to address the variable presentation of OCD in the knee, each with varying results. To our knowledge the use of autogenous bone marrow supplementation to an OCD lesion has not been described. The purpose of this study was to determine the radiographic healing of OCD lesions of the knee in a cohort of young, active patients who underwent retroarticular drilling of an OCD lesion with supplemental back-filling with bone marrow aspirate concentrate as an adjuvant to facilitate healing. Methods: We evaluated adolescent patients who were diagnosed with OCD of the knee who had previously failed non-operative, conservative treatment. All subjects underwent retroarticular drilling of the knee with supplemental back-filling of the lesion with bone marrow aspirate concentrate (BMAC®), harvested from the ilium, by two Orthopaedic Surgeons from a single institution. Based off previously published definitions, lesions were assigned as small if < 320 mm2 or large >320 mm2. All lesions were then followed radiographically for evidence of healing. Healing was graded based off the ROCK (Research in OsteoChondritis of the Knee) group radiographic healing criteria, which has shown excellent reliability. The healing was rated by two independent reviewers and when disagreements were noted a third reviewer was brought in to facilitate group consensus on healing. Results: 52 lesions in 49 patients were included in the study. 26 right knees, 26 left knees with 41 lesions located on the medial femoral condyle and 11 lesions located on the lateral femoral condyle. The mean age of the subjects was 12.5 (10 - 17) years old. 30 subjects were male, 19 were female. All lesions were categorized as immobile lesions based off the ROCK Arthroscopy Classification. The average OCD lesion size was 407 mm2 (132 - 899 mm2), respectively. The mean amount of BMAC® used per OCD lesion was 60 mL (45 - 120 mL). 40 lesions (76.9%) were rated as healed at a mean of 10.6 (2 - 32) months. 10 lesions (18.9%) were rated as 25-75% healed and 3.8% were rated at 0 - 25% healed at latest follow-up. 76.5% of large lesions were rated as healed at final follow-up. Whereas 77.8% of small lesions were rated as healed at final follow-up. There were three complications (1 rash from skin glue, 1 suture abscess, and 1 contact dermatitis from surgical cleansing prep) however no complications were noted from the surgical intervention or BMAC®. Conclusion: Overall healing rates with surgical treatment of OCD lesions that have failed non-operative interventions are variable. For immobile lesions, mainstay treatment options include retroarticular and transarticular drilling. Based off previous definitions of lesion size, the mean lesion size in our cohort would be categorized as “large” with 65% of our lesions falling into this category. Previously published series have shown that large lesions are significantly less likely to heal. Despite this we showed a 76.5% healing rate for large lesions. Overall, the adjuvant supplementation of BMAC® as back-fill for retrograde drilling of large OCD lesions of the knee has shown excellent results with no serious complications associated with its use. Future randomized trials are necessary to evaluate the comparative effectiveness of this treatment method.


Cartilage ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 155-161 ◽  
Author(s):  
Guilherme C. Gracitelli ◽  
Luis Eduardo Passarelli Tirico ◽  
Julie C. McCauley ◽  
Pamela A. Pulido ◽  
William D. Bugbee

Objective The purpose of this study was to evaluate functional outcomes and allograft survivorship among patients with knee fracture who underwent fresh osteochondral allograft (OCA) transplantation as a salvage treatment option. Design Retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data. Setting Department of Orthopaedic Surgery at one hospital. Patients Fresh OCAs were implanted for osteochondral lesions after knee fracture in 24 males and 15 females with an average age of 34 years. Twenty-nine lesions (74%) were tibial plateau fractures, 6 (15%) were femoral condyle fractures, and 4 (10%) were patella fractures. Main Outcome Measurements Clinical evaluation included modified Merle d’Aubigné-Postel (18-point), International Knee Documentation Committee, and Knee Society function scores, and patient satisfaction. Failure of OCA was defined as revision OCA or conversion to total knee arthroplasty (TKA). Results Nineteen of 39 knees (49%) had further surgery. Ten knees (26%) were considered OCA failures (3 OCA revisions, 6 TKA, and 1 patellectomy). Survivorship of the OCA was 82.6% at 5 years and 69.6% at 10 years. Among the 29 knees (74%) that had the OCA still in situ, median follow-up was 6.6 years. Pain and function improved from preoperative to latest follow-up; 83% of patients reported satisfaction with OCA results. Conclusion OCA transplantation is a useful salvage treatment option for osteochondral lesions caused by knee fracture. Although the reoperation rate was high, successful outcome was associated with significant clinical improvement.


2018 ◽  
Vol 46 (10) ◽  
pp. 2441-2448 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dean Wang ◽  
Francesca R. Coxe ◽  
George C. Balazs ◽  
Brenda Chang ◽  
Kristofer J. Jones ◽  
...  

Background: For the treatment of femoral condyle cartilage defects with osteochondral allograft transplantation (OCA), many surgeons have relaxed their graft-recipient size-matching criteria given the limited allograft supply. However, since the anteroposterior (AP) length is typically correlated with the radius of curvature for a given condyle, a large mismatch in graft-recipient AP length can indicate a corresponding mismatch in the radius of curvature, leading to articular incongruity after implantation. Purpose: To evaluate the association between femoral condyle graft–recipient AP mismatch and clinical outcomes of OCA. Study Design: Case-control study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: A retrospective review was conducted of patients treated with OCA for femoral condyle chondral defects from 2000 to 2015. Graft characteristics, including AP and mediolateral dimensions, were gathered from vendor-specific allograft offering documents. Patient condyle dimensions were measured on preoperative magnetic resonance imaging. Reoperations and patient responses to validated outcome measures were reviewed. Failure was defined by any partial removal/revision of the allograft or conversion to knee arthroplasty. A multivariable logistic regression model was fitted to examine the association of AP mismatch with OCA failure while adjusting for patient age and number of previous ipsilateral knee surgical procedures. Results: A total of 69 knees from 69 patients (mean age, 35.7 years; 71% male) met the inclusion criteria. Mean duration of follow-up was 4 years (range, 2-16 years). The mean absolute graft-recipient AP mismatch was 6.7 mm (range, 0-20 mm; P < .01). At final follow-up, 19 knees had failed. There was no significant difference in the mean absolute AP mismatch between failures (8.1 mm) and nonfailures (6.2 mm; P = .17). Multivariate logistic regression revealed that AP mismatch was not associated with graft failure ( P = .14). At final follow-up, significant improvements were noted in the 36-Item Short Form Health Survey, International Knee Documentation Committee subjective form, and Knee Outcome Survey–Activities of Daily Living ( P < .01 for all). Magnitude of AP mismatch was not associated with postoperative outcome scores or achievement of minimal clinically significant differences in outcome scores. Conclusion: Magnitude of graft-recipient AP mismatch was not associated with midterm OCA failure rates or patient-reported outcome scores, suggesting that AP length mismatch within the limits measured here is not a contraindication for graft acceptance.


2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 232596711775262 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan M. Pestka ◽  
Nam H. Luu ◽  
Norbert P. Südkamp ◽  
Peter Angele ◽  
Gunther Spahn ◽  
...  

Background: Various operative strategies have been introduced to restore the integrity of articular cartilage when injured. The frequency of revision surgery after cartilage regenerative surgery remains incompletely understood. Purpose/Hypothesis: The purpose of this study was to identify the reasons for revision surgery after cartilage regenerative surgery of the knee. We hypothesized that in a large patient cohort, revision rates would differ from those in the current literature. Study Design: Case-control study; Level of evidence, 3. Methods: A total of 2659 complete data sets from the German Cartilage Registry were available for analyses. In brief, baseline data were provided by the attending physician at the time of index surgery. Follow-up data were collected using a web-based questionnaire inquiring whether patients had needed revision surgery during follow-up, which was defined as the endpoint of the present analysis. Results: A total of 88 patients (3.3%) reported the need for revision surgery as early as 12 months postoperatively. Among the most common causes were arthrofibrosis (n = 27) and infection (n = 10). Female patients showed a significantly greater complication rate (4.5%) when compared with male patients (2.6%; P = .0071). The majority of cartilage lesions were located at the medial femoral condyle (40.2%), with a mean defect size of 3.5 ± 2.1 cm2. Neither the location nor defect size appeared to lead to an increased revision rate, which was greatest after osteochondral autografts (5.2%) and autologous chondrocyte implantation (4.6%). Revision rates did not differ significantly among surgical techniques. Chi-square analysis revealed significant correlations between the number of previous joint surgeries and the need for revision surgery ( P = .0203). Multivariate regression analysis further confirmed sex and the number of previous surgeries as variables predicting the need for early revision surgery. Conclusion: The low early revision rates found in this study underline that today’s cartilage repair surgeries are mostly safe. Although invasiveness and techniques differ greatly among the procedures, no differences in revision rates were observed. Specific factors such as sex and the number of previous surgeries seem to influence overall revision rates and were identified as relevant risk factors with regard to patient safety.


Cartilage ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 194760352095813
Author(s):  
Kwadwo A. Owusu-Akyaw ◽  
Jennifer Bido ◽  
Tyler Warner ◽  
Scott A. Rodeo ◽  
Riley J. Williams

Background Osteochondral allograft (OCA) transplantation is an increasingly common treatment for patients with symptomatic focal chondral lesions of the knee. There has been increasing interest in determining predictive factors to maximize patient benefit after this operation. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the predictive association of the physical component (PCS) and mental component (MCS) scores of the Short Form 36 (SF-36) questionnaire for achievement of the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) after OCA transplantation. Methods This retrospective study of a longitudinally maintained institutional registry included 91 patients who had undergone OCA transplantation for symptomatic focal osteochondral lesions of the femoral condyle. Included patients were those with complete preoperative questionnaires for the SF-36 and IKDC and completed postoperative IKDC at 2-year follow-up. Multivariate analysis was performed evaluating predictive association of the preoperative MCS and PCS with achievement of the MCID for the IKDC questionnaire. Results Logistic multivariate modeling demonstrated a statistically significant association between lower preoperative PCS and achievement of the MCID ( P = 0.022). A defect diameter >2 cm was also associated with achievement of MCID ( P = 0.049). Preoperative MCS did not demonstrate a significant association ( P = 0.09) with achievement of the MCID. Conclusions For this cohort of 91 patients, the preoperative SF-36 PCS and lesion size were predictive of achievement of the MCID at 2-year follow-up after femoral OCA transplantation. These findings support an important role of baseline physical health scores for predicting which patients will obtain a meaningful clinical benefit from this surgery.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document