Regenerative Medicine Approaches in Cartilage Repair: Impact on Pain Management and Function

Background and/or Objectives: Cartilage damage and degeneration are significant causes of chronic pain and disability. Due to cartilage’s avascular nature, its self-repair capabilities are limited, leading to a growing demand for regenerative medicine treatments aimed at enhancing cartilage repair. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the current landscape of regenerative medicine techniques for cartilage repair and their implications for pain management.

Design: Systematic review.

Setting : PubMed.

Participants : A systematic review of PubMed was conducted using the search terms “regenerative medicine,” “pain management,” and “cartilage.”

Interventions: Not applicable.

Main Outcome Measures: Studies published within the past decade discussing regenerative medicine techniques for cartilage injury and their impact on pain management.

Results: 110 articles met inclusion criteria. Several regenerative approaches show promise: • Cell-based therapies: Autologous chondrocyte implantation and mesenchymal stem cell therapy promote cartilage formation and reduce pain. • Tissue-engineered scaffolds: Scaffolds made from polylactic acid, polyglycolic acid, or polycaprolactone demonstrated superior functional and pain relief at two and four years compared to surgery. • Hydrogel injections: Hydrogels conforming to cartilage lesions provide structural support, reduce scarring, and alleviate postoperative pain. • Growth factor delivery: Direct growth factor delivery enhances cartilage repair, though its impact on pain relief requires further investigation. • Gene therapy: Placing cells overexpressing chondrogenic growth factors (e.g., TGF-β1) at the injury site has shown significant improvement in knee function and pain relief at three and twenty-four months. Due to promising clinical trial outcomes, various cartilage regenerative products have received FDA approval, including MACI, CartiHeal, Chondrocytes-T-Ortho-ACI, Spherox, Cartilife, and the Agili-C implant.

Conclusions: Regenerative medical approaches for cartilage injury treatment are rapidly advancing and hold great promise for reducing pain and improving the quality of life for patients. However, further research is needed to refine these therapies and fully understand their long-term effectiveness.