title: The quality of healing: articular cartilage.
abstract: Articular cartilage lacks an intrinsic capacity for self-repair, and once damaged, it never heals. This creates an opportunity for surgical intervention, whether to stimulate a healing response that results in the formation of a lower-quality fibrocartilaginous scar or formal cartilage repair in the form of cartilage transplants. This article will review the nature of cartilage injury and discuss indications and techniques for repair.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedics, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Andreas H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Gomoll
authors.forename: Tom
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Minas
mesh_terms: D002358:Cartilage, Articular / Q000293:injuries / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D019902:Chondrocytes / Q000502:physiology / Q000637:transplantation*; D006801:Humans; D015601:Injury Severity Score; D011379:Prognosis; D023822:Tissue Engineering; D014182:Transplantation, Autologous / Q000379:methods*; D014945:Wound Healing