London Cartilage Clinic
Explore expert articles on cartilage care, regenerative treatments, and practical recovery advice from our specialist team.
Mosaicplasty outperformed microfracture for knee cartilage defects in a decade-long randomised trial, with transplanted hyaline cartilage remaining durable whilst microfracture's fibrocartilage fatigued, explaining why initial equivalence dissolved between five and ten years.
The hip's labrum acts as a gasket seal, maintaining a pressurised fluid film; years of friction from bone shape deformities gradually tear it, and once torn, cartilage wear accelerates.
Hip pain waking patients at night or preventing them from lying comfortably on the affected side is a cardinal clinical indicator of osteoarthritis. The joint lining becomes inflamed and does not switch off with rest, making nocturnal pain distinct from ordinary muscular soreness.
Anterior groin pain, hip clicking, and restricted rotation signal femoroacetabular impingement: a condition where abnormal hip bone geometry causes progressive labral wear that drives early osteoarthritis when untreated.
Osteochondral allograft replaces full-depth knee cartilage and bone defects in a single operation, with 10-year graft survival of 78–91%, reaching 99% in younger patients with isolated lesions.
ChondroFiller is a biodegradable collagen scaffold that recruits the body's repair cells; Arthrosamid is a permanent hydrogel that cushions the joint without promoting healing. The choice depends on whether cartilage can regenerate, not on which treatment works better.
