Articular cartilage is a highly differentiated tissue, lacking a vascular supply and having only limited regenerative capability. It has been well documented that articular cartilage of mature animals has little capacity for repair after traumatic inj...
Articular cartilage is a highly differentiated tissue, lacking a vascular supply and having only limited regenerative capability. It has been well documented that articular cartilage of mature animals has little capacity for repair after traumatic injury. Cuts or other mechanical damage restricted to the cartilage alone do not repair. However, it has been observed both experimentally and clinically that articular defects extending to the subchondral bone eventually are resurfaced with a form of fibrous, fibrocartilagenous or hyaline like cartilagenous tissue.
Author's study was designed to evaluate the healing process of osteochondral defect of the knee of rabbit. Partial thickness defect of cartilge and full thickness osteochondral defect of 30 rabbits were made with 3mm diameter of drill-bit.
Experimental animals were divided into three groups :
1) Group Ⅰ: Control group
2) Group Ⅱ: Partical cartilage defect group
3) Group Ⅲ: Osteochondral defect group
The healing of the defect was assessed at 1weeks, 3weeks, 5weeks, 12weeks after
operation by gross and histological examination. The principal findings were as follows.
1. The initial formation of repair tissue was variable, but it ocurred in most cases.
2. In partial cartilage defect group, degenerative change was more severe.
3. There is evidence of healing of small (1-4 mm diameter) but not of large full thickness articular defect.
4. Microscopically, resurfacing of the cartilage holes repaired mainly with fibrocartilage at 5 weeks of injury.