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A tear of a meniscus is a rupturing of one or more of the fibrocartilage strips in the knee called menisci. When doctors and patients refer to "torn cartilage" in the knee, they actually may be referring to an injury to a meniscus at the top of one of the tibiae. Menisci can be torn during innocuous activities such as walking or squatting.
A meniscus (pl.: menisci or meniscuses) is a crescent-shaped fibrocartilaginous anatomical structure that, in contrast to an articular disc, only partly divides a joint cavity. [1] In humans, they are present in the knee, wrist, acromioclavicular, sternoclavicular, and temporomandibular joints; [2] in other animals they may be present in other ...
The knee joint contains two crescent-shaped fibrocartilaginous structures, the menisci (medial and lateral), which serve as shock absorbers and stabilize the joint during movement. Each meniscus has an outer vascular zone (red-red zone), which has a good blood supply and healing potential as well as a central avascular zone (white-white zone ...
Though articular cartilage damage is not life-threatening, it does strongly affect one's quality of life. Articular cartilage damage is often the cause of severe pain, knee swelling, substantial reduction in mobility and severe restrictions to one's activities. Over the last decades, however, research has focused on regenerating damaged joints.
The knee may become affected by almost any form of arthritis. [2] The word arthritis refers to inflammation of the joints. [3] [4] Types of arthritis include those related to wear and tear of cartilage, such as osteoarthritis, to those associated with inflammation resulting from an overactive immune system (such as rheumatoid arthritis). [5] [6]
Osteoarthritis: The cartilage covering bones (articular cartilage) is thinned, eventually completely worn out, resulting in a "bone against bone" joint, resulting in pain and reduced mobility. Osteoarthritis is very common, affects the joints exposed to high stress and is therefore considered the result of "wear and tear" rather than a true ...
In the adult the articular surface is about 12 cm 2 (1.9 sq in) and covered by cartilage, which can reach a maximal thickness of 6 mm (0.24 in) in the centre at about 30 years of age. Owing to the great stress on the patellofemoral joint during resisted knee flexion, the articular cartilage of the patella is among the thickest in the human body.
The surgery is performed by arthroscopy, after the joint is cleaned of calcified cartilage. Through use of an awl, the surgeon creates tiny fractures in the subchondral bone plate. [10] Blood and bone marrow (which contains stem cells) seep out of the fractures, creating a blood clot that releases cartilage-building cells.