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Meniscal Allografts of the Knee

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European Surgical Orthopaedics and Traumatology

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Abstract

Meniscal allograft transplantation has emerged as a useful treatment for carefully selected patients. Almost all studies, from short- to long-term (>10 years of follow-up), report patient satisfaction and improvement in pain and function.

Objectively, physical examination findings are improved in the majority of patients. Radiologically, joint space narrowing is only significantly progressive at long-term follow-up. On magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), shrinkage is seen after some years, but more with lyophilized allografts. Histologically, incomplete re-population of the graft is noticed. Second-look arthroscopy usually shows good healing of the capsule. In a recent long-term study, progression of cartilage degeneration according to MRI and radiological criteria was halted in a number of patients, indicating a chondroprotective effect.

However, there still is a lack of consensus on how the success of a meniscal transplantation should be evaluated, which makes it difficult to compare study outcomes. In our opinion, radiographic measurement of joint space narrowing and changes in meniscal allograft MR signal are the best assessment tools, but the use of a good clinical evaluation system, such as the International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC) and the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) scoring system, remains essential.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Traumatology, Ghent University Hospital, De Pintelaan 185, 9000, Ghent, Belgium

    René Verdonk & Marie Van Laer

  2. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Traumatology, Monica Ziekenhuizen, 3000, Antwerpen, Belgium

    Peter Verdonk

  3. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Traumatology, Ghent State University, st pietersnieuwstraat, 9000, Ghent, Belgium

    Karl Fredrik Almqvist

Authors
  1. René Verdonk
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  2. Peter Verdonk
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  3. Marie Van Laer
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  4. Karl Fredrik Almqvist
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to René Verdonk .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital, Stanmore, United Kingdom

    George Bentley

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© 2014 EFORT

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Verdonk, R., Verdonk, P., Van Laer, M., Almqvist, K.F. (2014). Meniscal Allografts of the Knee. In: Bentley, G. (eds) European Surgical Orthopaedics and Traumatology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-34746-7_139

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-34746-7_139

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-642-34745-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-34746-7

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