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Improved early cartilage maturation seen with scaffolds augmented with bone marrow aspirate concentrate
Results from this 12-month comparative MRI analysis demonstrated improved cartilage maturation with more fill and mean T2 values closer resembling superficial native hyaline cartilage in patients with defects treated with scaffolds augmented with bone marrow aspirate concentrate.
Researchers prospectively followed 46 patients with full-thickness cartilage defects of the femur. Of these patients, 11 underwent treatment with a control scaffold; 23 patients had an osteochondral scaffold with platelet-rich plasma (PRP); and 12 patients had with an osteochondral scaffold augmented with bone marrow aspirate concentrate (BMAC). At 12-months postoperatively, investigators performed MRI qualitative assessments and quantitative T2-mapping. A musculoskeletal radiologist who was blinded to treatment allocation performed an image assessment. After cartilage repair, investigators compared the three groups.
According to results of the qualitative MRI assessment, patients in the PRP and BMAC groups had superior cartilage fill at the 12-month follow-up compared with patients in the control group. The PRP group had a mean T2 value that did not differ significantly to that of the control group. However, the BMAC group compared with the other treatment groups had a statistically higher mean T2 value and was closer to the T2 value of the superficial native hyaline cartilage. Investigators noted none of the groups had bony overgrowth. ‒ by Monica Jaramillo
Disclosures: Krych reports he is a paid consultant for Arthrex Inc. and receives research support from the Arthritis Foundation and Histogenics. Please see the full study for a list of all other authors’ relevant financial disclosures.