Microfracture or not

[ljljlj393]

Hope you all can help me!

[heyz123456]

I am 8 months post surgery and I am about literally 100%. Before my surgery I was able to stand on my feet for about maybe 2 mins and a max 3 min. Now I can stand for about easily 4 hours if I want too. Still trying to get back in sports and build the muscle. If you have any questions just shoot.

[NickCat11]

How big is your lesion? Microfracture works well for very small lesions but still is only a temporary solution. Getting back into sports also effects how long it will last. There are much better alternatives to look at if you're not in a rush (DeNovo NT, Stem Cell Regenerative Therapy). Those two would be my choices based on the current research

[heyz123456]

Well I really didnt have a choice, Doc thought it was a meniscus tear, woke up with the relief of it being repaired but then later found out I had a microfracture performed. By the time it wears down in around 10 years or so im sure there will be better solutions to knee issues. I am not sure about how big my lesion was but I will update you soon.

[dm]

mine failed. refused allografting on top of that with pf compartment grade 4 and no medial meniscus to speak of. seemed bad route to go. new mri says knee's in worse shape yet... now have pf fat pad scarring that wasn't there 10 mos ago too, chondromalacia gr 3/4 around failed mfx area on femur, pf zero articular cartilage....etc. bad deal. I'm thinking it's tkr time.

[surfbum]

NOT AT ALL - DONT EVEN THINK ABOUT IT. If the OS will be going into your knee knowing that there is a cartilage defect and he is planning to do a Microfracture, you are not seeing a cartilage specialist. Microfracture is archaic and a very very temporary fix. Go for Denovo NT. The thought leaders on cartilage repair are using Denovo as a first choice now.

[surfbum]

mine failed. refused allografting on top of that with pf compartment grade 4 and no medial meniscus to speak of. seemed bad route to go. new mri says knee's in worse shape yet... now have pf fat pad scarring that wasn't there 10 mos ago too, chondromalacia gr 3/4 around failed mfx area on femur, pf zero articular cartilage....etc. bad deal. I'm thinking it's tkr time.

Has anyone talked to you about Denovo?

[Vickster]

All very well if you are in the US, not available in Europe as far as I know...

[gijon]

Microfracture works for some, sucks for others. It definitely sucked for me and I had a lesion that was more on the smaller side. My knee never got back to even 50%. When I walked on it, even seven months after the surgery, I had the worst gait in the world and bad pain with each step I took.

I did the DeNovo and a week after surgery, it felt completely different, in a good way. It took me nearly 6 weeks to get to full leg flexion after microfracture, about 2 and a half weeks for the DeNovo. The swelling and edema was the worst trouble I had after microfracture and all the ice and ibuprofen in the world couldn't keep the swelling down. I am 6 weeks out from DeNovo and while it swells slightly with activity, at rest, there is zero swelling. I feel like I have a lot more flexibility this time around.

I know DeNovo is only available in the U.S. but I do believe there are other alternatives to microfracture in Europe that involve single stage ACI. It just depends on your injury. Although, some OS' do not have a choice about doing microfracture or something else because the insurance company will just deny the advanced single stage ACI's. The main reason most OS' are still doing microfracture is because it is the cheapest of the cartilage repairs, that still show somewhat of a success rate, which is what insurance companies like to see.

[ljljlj393]

since my microfracture surgery i have also had mosaicplasty and a clean out. i'm probably going in for a ttt and hope it won't be as bad as everyone is saying.

[jt801]

My defect was on the lateral femoral condyle-weight bearing area and about the size of a quarter. I was on crutches and CPM for 8 weeks and then resumed my normal activities except sports. After about 11 months post-op i had an MRI that showed the defect had filled, so I started playing basketball and flag football again. For the last 3 years i've done whatever i wanted (except any kind of distance running) and while i have soreness from time to time i feel the surgery was worth it. I can't tell you why it's successful for some and not others but i wish you the best whatever you decide to do.