London Cartilage Clinic
Explore expert articles on cartilage care, regenerative treatments, and practical recovery advice from our specialist team.
AMIC is used for focal, full-thickness knee cartilage defects of about 2–8 cm² in relatively preserved joints, with recovery usually taking 6–12 months. In the hip, MACI remains a specialist two-stage option for selected younger patients with grade III–IV defects of at least 2 cm², where joint space and biomechanics still support preservation.
MRI and X‑ray findings often look worse than the pain feels: symptom‑free knees can still show meniscal tears, so treatment decisions depend on function, examination and symptom pattern as much as the scan. For knees, hips and heels, conservative care usually comes before surgery, with imaging used only when it changes the plan.
Corticosteroid injections for knee osteoarthritis ease pain mainly for about six weeks, hyaluronic acid tends to help for months, and polyacrylamide hydrogel may last longer but with weaker evidence; BMAC has mixed human results, while exosome therapy remains largely preclinical.
Most suitable patients with focal knee cartilage defects see pain and function improve over the first 3–6 months after a ChondroFiller injection, with a consolidation phase from 6 to 12 months rather than dramatic extra gains. This article explains what the evidence shows, what recovery typically feels like week by week, and how to tell whether the non-surgical injection or the Liquid Cartilage surgical pathway is the better fit.
OATS transfers cylindrical cartilage-and-bone plugs to rebuild focal talar dome defects, making it a reconstructive option for larger or deeper lesions. Knee chondroplasty is only an arthroscopic smoothing procedure for ragged cartilage edges, with benefits limited when osteoarthritis is more advanced.
A hip MRI that shows a labral tear, cam morphology or pincer morphology is describing structural findings, not proving the cause of pain. FAI refers to the shape-related contact, while FAIS is the clinical syndrome diagnosed only when symptoms, examination and imaging all fit together.
