SynthesisKnee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy : official journal of the ESSKA2020
Microfracture for cartilage repair in the knee: a systematic review of the contemporary literature.
Synthesis in Knee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy : official journal of the ESSKA, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 55 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
55 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Cartilage Regeneration Using Human Umbilical Cord Blood Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Medicina (Kaunas, Lithuania) · 2022Pooled it
- Autologous matrix-induced chondrogenesis is effective for focal chondral defects of the knee.Scientific reports · 2022Pooled it
- Enhanced microfracture using acellular scaffolds improves results after treatment of symptomatic focal grade III/IV knee cartilage lesions but current clinical evidence does not allow unequivocal recommendation.Knee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy : official journal of the ESSKA · 2020Pooled it
- Trial
- Supercapsular percutaneously-assisted total hip (SuperPath) versus posterolateral total hip arthroplasty in bilateral osteonecrosis of the femoral head: a pilot clinical trial.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2019Trial
- Combining polydioxanone-based scaffold and allogeneic adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells enhances articular cartilage repair - a pre-clinical study.Journal of orthopaedic translation · 2026Article
- Articular Cartilage Tissue Engineering: Cells, Bioinstructive Scaffolds, Immunological Microenvironment, and Emerging Technologies.Bioengineering (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Surgical treatment of isolated cartilage lesions during anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction was associated with greater lesion stability but similar 2-year clinical outcomes: A registry-based matched-pair second-look study.Journal of experimental orthopaedics · 2026Article
- Surgical caseload and annual volume influence cartilage treatment strategies in primary anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction.Knee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy : official journal of the ESSKA · 2026Article
- Sex and Age Affect Progression to Total Knee Arthroplasty After Cartilage Surgery: A UK Biobank Cohort Study.Cartilage · 2026Article
- Defining the Minimal Clinically Important Difference and Patient Acceptable Symptom State for Isolated Microfracture of the Knee at 5-Year Follow-up.Orthopaedic journal of sports medicine · 2026Article
- Reconstruction of an extensive gouty tophus ulceration at the wrist using a dermal matrix and autologous skin graft: A case report.JPRAS open · 2026Article
- Effectiveness of platelet-rich plasma plus microfracture compared with microfracture alone in the treatment of knee cartilage lesions: a systematic review and meta-analysis of comparative studies.International journal of surgery (London, England) · 2026Article
- Intelligent treatment strategies for knee cartilage injury repair.Frontiers in surgery · 2026Review
- Microphysiological Systems for Comorbidity Studies: Chronic Kidney Disease and Osteoarthritis.Advanced healthcare materials · 2025Review
- Delayed Lubricin Injection Improves Cartilage Repair Tissue Quality in an In Vivo Rabbit Osteochondral Defect Model.Journal of orthopaedic research : official publication of the Orthopaedic Research Society · 2025Article
- Phenotype-Preserving Co-culture of Osteoblasts and Chondrocytes Enhances Bone-Cartilage Interface Integration in a PRP-Augmented Scaffold.Tissue engineering and regenerative medicine · 2025Article
- A non-interventional study to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of a biphasic, chondrocyte-containing biomaterial (NOVOCART® 3D) in the treatment of localized full-thickness cartilage defects or osteochondral lesions of the knee joint (NISANIK).Journal of experimental orthopaedics · 2025Article
- Combined High Tibial Osteotomy and Transtibial Drilling of Tibial and Femoral Medial Compartment Cartilage Defect of the Knee.Arthroscopy techniques · 2025Article
- [Pharmacological therapy for subchondral pathologies of the knee joint].Orthopadie (Heidelberg, Germany) · 2025Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposeTo systematically review and evaluate novel clinical data following microfracture treatment of knee articular cartilage defects.
methodsA systematic review was performed by searching PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Cochrane Library databases for clinical trials on microfracture treatment, published between 2013 and 2018. Titles, abstracts, and articles were reviewed, and data concerning patient demographics, study design, pre-, intra-, and postoperative findings were extracted. PRISMA guidelines were applied. The methodological quality of the included studies was analyzed by the modified Coleman Methodology Score (CMS), and aggregate data were generated.
resultsEighteen studies including 1830 defects (1759 patients) were included. Of them, 8 (59% of patients) were cohort studies without a comparison group. Overall study quality was moderate (mean total CMS: 64 points), mainly due to low patient numbers, short follow-up periods, lack of control groups and structural repair tissue evaluation, and inhomogeneity in outcome parameters. Microfracture treatment of full-thickness articular cartilage defects (3.4 ± 2.1 cm
conclusionsMicrofracture provides good function and pain relief at the mid-term and clinically largely satisfying results thereafter. Standardized, high-quality future study designs will better refine optimal indications for microfracture in the context of cartilage repair strategies. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: This systematic review is based on studies with levels of evidence ranging between I and IV (see results section and Table). Therefore, and according to this journals Instructions for Authors (SYSTEMATIC REVIEWS AND META-ANALYSES are assigned a level of evidence equivalent to the lowest level of evidence used from the manuscripts analysed), level of evidence is IV.
Indexed as
Identifiers
30659314What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.