The repair of chondral lesions associated with
femoroacetabular impingement requires specific treatment in addition
to that of the impingement. In this single-centre retrospective
analysis of a consecutive series of patients we compared treatment
with microfracture (MFx) with a technique of enhanced microfracture
autologous matrix-induced chondrogenesis (AMIC). Acetabular grade III and IV chondral lesions measuring between
2 cm2 and 8 cm2 in 147 patients were treated
by MFx in 77 and AMIC in 70. The outcome was assessed using the
modified Harris hip score at six months and one, two, three, four
and five years post-operatively. The outcome in both groups was
significantly improved at six months and one year post-operatively.
During the subsequent four years the outcome in the MFx group slowly deteriorated,
whereas that in the AMIC group remained stable. Six patients in
the MFx group subsequently required total hip arthroplasty, compared
with none in the AMIC group We conclude that the short-term clinical outcome improves in
patients with acetabular chondral damage following both MFx and
AMIC. However, the AMIC group had better and more durable improvement,
particularly in patients with large (≥ 4 cm2) lesions. Cite this article:
This systematic review examines the current literature regarding surgical techniques for restoring articular cartilage in the hip, from the older microfracture techniques involving perforation to the subchondral bone, to adaptations of this technique using nanofractures and scaffolds. This review discusses the autologous and allograft transfer systems and the autologous matrix-induced chondrogenesis (AMIC) technique, as well as a summary of the previously discussed techniques, which could become common practice for restoring articular cartilage, thus reducing the need for total hip arthroplasty. Using the British Medical Journal Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development and Evaluation (BMJ GRADE) system and Grade system. Comparison of the studies discussed shows that microfracture has the greatest quantity and quality of research, whereas the newer
