Advances in treatment of articular cartilage injuries

Cartilage is a kind of terminally differentiated tissue devoid of vessel or nerve, and it is difficult to repair by itself after damage. Many studies for the treatment of cartilage injuries were performed in recent years aiming at repair of the structure and restoration of its function for injured joint. This article reviews the traditional methods of treatment for cartilage injuries, such as joint lavage with the aid of arthroscope, abrasion chondroplasty, laser abrasion and chondroplasty, and drilling of the subchondral bone-marrow space. The research advances in treatment of articular cartilage injuries with tissue engineering were summarized.