Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Clinical Evaluation of Patellar Resurfacing With Press-Fit Osteochondral Autograft Plugs

BackgroundAutologous osteochondral transplantation (AOT) has been successfully used in the femoral condyle and trochlea and is an attractive treatment option for full-thickness patellar cartilage lesions.HypothesisPatients treated with AOT for the repair of symptomatic, isolated patellar cartilage lesions will demonstrate improvement in functional outcomes and postoperative magnetic resonance imaging appearance.Study DesignCase series; Level of evidence, 4.MethodsBetween 2002 and 2006, patients with focal patellar cartilage lesions treated with AOT were prospectively followed. The mean age at the time of surgery was 30 years. Clinical assessment was performed with the International Knee Documentation Committee (IKDC), activities of daily living of the Knee Outcome Survey (ADL), and Short Form-36 (SF-36) at baseline and most recent follow-up. Magnetic resonance imaging was used to evaluate the cartilage repair morphologic characteristics in 14 cases.ResultsTwenty-two patients met the study criteria with a ...