London Cartilage Clinic
Explore expert articles on cartilage care, regenerative treatments, and practical recovery advice from our specialist team.
Most meniscus tears, particularly degenerative ones in adults over 35, respond to physiotherapy as well as surgery. Randomised trials show conservative management preserves the surgical option if needed, with equivalent long-term outcomes.
In appropriately selected patients, knee osteotomy delays total knee replacement by 10 to 15 years by realigning the leg to redirect body weight away from worn cartilage.
Two patients with identical knee MRI findings can experience markedly different pain levels; determining which structural change is actually causing symptoms requires clinical assessment, not the report alone.
In roughly half of ACL ruptures, articular cartilage sustains damage at the moment of rupture. The joint's inflammatory cascade thereafter actively degrades cartilage matrix, which cannot self-repair; this initiates osteoarthritis typically a decade earlier than in uninjured peers.
ChondroFiller hip injections cost £6,500–£9,500 and recruit the patient's own cells to repair cartilage; a structured preservation model requires yearly imaging and bi-annual top-up injections.
OATS transplants the patient's own hyaline cartilage into the knee joint; microfracture draws marrow cells that form fibrocartilage — softer, less durable tissue. For athletes in high-impact sport, the difference is decisive: 93% return to sport after OATS versus roughly 50% after microfracture.
