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The state of cartilage regeneration: current and future technologies

  • Biological Adjuvants in Orthopedic Surgery (J Dines and D Grande, Section Editors)
  • Published:
Current Reviews in Musculoskeletal Medicine Aims and scope Submit manuscript

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Abstract

It is clear that mature human articular cartilage does not have the innate ability to regenerate. Due to this, much effort has been put forth to work on bestowing this ability. While early data focused on more basic outcomes such as percentage of defect fill, the tissue formed was a “cartilage scar” or “hyaline-like” tissue. Even with more advanced technologies, it is clear that no current procedure is able to reconstitute the native structure and function of true hyaline cartilage. As research advancement has somewhat plateaued in this regard, it is crucial that future work focuses on a multifactorial approach, treating the joint as an organ system. The purpose of this review is to update readers on the most recent literature and controversies surrounding articular cartilage regeneration. Specific focus will be placed on current technologies available in the USA and the basic science to support them.

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Conflict of Interest

Adam B. Yanke receives research support from Arthrex and NuTech companies.

Susan Chubinskaya reports grants from Rush University Ciba-Geigy Endowed Chair, grants from Joint restoration foundation, grants from Zimmer during the conduct of the study, grants from Cartiheal, and grants from Merrimackpharma, outside the submitted work.

Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent

This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Sports Medicine, Cartilage Restoration Center, Midwest Orthopedics at Rush, Rush University Medical Center, 1611 West Harrison Street, Suite 300, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA

    Adam B. Yanke

  2. Ciba-Geigy Professor of Biochemistry, Professor of Orthopedic Surgery & Medicine (Section of Rheumatology), Rush University Medical Center, Cohn Research Building, Suite 522, 1735 West Harrison Street, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA

    Susan Chubinskaya

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  1. Adam B. Yanke
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  2. Susan Chubinskaya
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Correspondence to Adam B. Yanke.

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This article is part of the Topical Collection on Biological Adjuvants in Orthopedic Surgery

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Yanke, A.B., Chubinskaya, S. The state of cartilage regeneration: current and future technologies. Curr Rev Musculoskelet Med 8, 1–8 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12178-014-9254-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12178-014-9254-7

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