Cartilage repair Tempe: why is your joint still sore?

What does cartilage soreness feel like?

The joint may ache after walking or sitting. You'll sometimes notice swelling, catching, or less motion too.

Cartilage isn't the only possible cause. Muscles and other tissue around the joint can also become sore.

What can I try at home?

Do less of whatever starts the ache. You needn't quit all movement.

Try a shorter walk and an easier pace. Gentle strength work may also help your joint handle daily use.

When should I book a visit?

Get checked when soreness keeps limiting your day. Seek prompt medical care right away if the joint is hot, you have a fever, swelling becomes much worse within hours, or you suddenly can't put weight on it.

Don't wait if the joint gets stuck and won't straighten. That's more serious than brief catching that lets go.

QC Kinetix calls its examining clinicians medical providers. They discuss regenerative treatments, which include office care prepared from material taken from your body.

In full, PRP means platelet-rich plasma. They draw your blood, separate the part rich in clotting platelets, and place that prepared part in the joint.

This is one of the clinic's regenerative treatments. The name doesn't mean your cartilage will grow back.

What happens after I call?

Bring your old report if you have it. You'll be asked when the soreness began and which motions worsen it.

There isn't a promised result. The exam may point to clinic care, physical therapy, surgery, or more testing first.

Notice what rest does as well. If moving makes the joint steadily worse, don't keep pushing it.

Sources

1. In a meta-analysis of 63 studies covering 5,397 knees of 4,751 adults with NO symptoms and no injury, the pooled prevalence of cartilage defects on MRI was 24% (95% CI 15% to 34%), rising from 11% in adults under 40 to 43% in adults aged 40 and over. Meniscal tears were present in 10%, bone marrow lesions in 18% and osteophytes in 25%.

   Culvenor AG, et al. — Prevalence of knee osteoarthritis features on magnetic resonance imaging in asymptomatic uninjured adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis.. Br J Sports Med, 2019. DOI: 10.1136/bjsports-2018-099257.

2. In 1,000 consecutive knee arthroscopies, chondral or osteochondral lesions of any type were found in 61% of patients and focal defects in 19%, with a mean total defect area of 2.1 cm2 and the medial femoral condyle involved in 58%. A single ICRS grade III or IV defect of at least 1 cm2 in a patient under 40 accounted for 5.3% of all arthroscopies.

   Hjelle K, et al. — Articular cartilage defects in 1,000 knee arthroscopies.. Arthroscopy, 2002. DOI: 10.1053/jars.2002.32839.

3. Across 32 articles covering 1,019 patients, most MRI parameters measured after cartilage repair showed limited or no correlation with clinical outcome. Only 28% of studies found a correlation between outcome and the composite MOCART or Henderson score, 22% with defect fill, and five studies found a weak-to-moderate correlation with the T2 index. A better-looking repair on MRI is not reliably a better-feeling knee.

   de Windt TS, et al. — Is magnetic resonance imaging reliable in predicting clinical outcome after articular cartilage repair of the knee? A systematic review and meta-analysis.. Am J Sports Med, 2013. DOI: 10.1177/0363546512473258.

4. A meta-analysis of 24 MRI studies (446 knees) found knee cartilage thickness and volume drop 3.3% to 4.9% immediately after a run, that T2 relaxation times return to baseline within about 91 minutes, and that existing cartilage defects were unchanged within 48 hours of running. The certainty of evidence was very low, but there is no measured sign that a run damages the joint surface.

   Coburn SL, et al. — Is running good or bad for your knees? A systematic review and meta-analysis of cartilage morphology and composition changes in the tibiofemoral and patellofemoral joints.. Osteoarthritis Cartilage, 2023. DOI: 10.1016/j.joca.2022.09.013.

5. A JBJS evidence-based review of chondral lesions of the knee sets management by lesion size, location, limb alignment and rotation, and patient demand rather than by product: osteochondral autograft transfer is described as durable and predictable for smaller lesions (under 2 cm2) in young active patients, while lesions of 2 cm2 or more are typically treated with osteochondral allograft transplantation, particulated juvenile articular cartilage, or matrix-associated chondrocyte implantation, with favourable mid- and long-term results reported for allograft or MACI in large lesions of 3 cm2 or more.

   Dekker TJ, et al. — Chondral Lesions of the Knee: An Evidence-Based Approach.. J Bone Joint Surg Am, 2021. DOI: 10.2106/JBJS.20.01161.

6. In 70 knees treated with particulated juvenile articular cartilage for full-thickness patellar defects, all patient-reported outcome scores improved significantly by two years (IKDC 41.1 to 73.5, Kujala 52 to 86.3). MRI showed defect fill above 66% in most patients by three months - and there was NO association between the percentage of defect fill and the outcome scores at one or two years.

   Marmor WA, et al. — Outcomes of Particulated Juvenile Articular Cartilage and Association With Defect Fill in Patients With Full-Thickness Patellar Chondral Lesions.. Orthop J Sports Med, 2024. DOI: 10.1177/23259671241249121.