Restoration of joint function through subchodral delivery of therapeutics

膝关节是一个复杂的器官，它依赖于健康的软骨来实现无痛的关节和适当的关节功能。软骨受损可导致关节疼痛和僵硬，丧失生活质量，并最终导致患者寻求临床帮助。为了在暴露的骨头上重新长出软骨，许多外科医生使用一种称为微骨折的关节镜技术，从软骨损伤的底部诱导出血，刺激软骨的自然修复反应。如果成功，这些所谓的“表面重塑”手术可以重新稳定关节，减缓骨关节炎的进展。为了提高目前的护理标准，我们开发了一种治疗性植入物，它由病人的全血混合壳聚糖制成，壳聚糖是一种含有葡萄糖胺的生物聚合物。我们的研究表明壳聚糖有助于修复受损的骨骼和软骨

The knee is a complex organ that depends on healthy cartilage for pain-free articulation and proper joint function. Damaged cartilage can lead to joint pain and stiffness, loss of quality of life, and eventually lead a patient to seek clinical help. To re-grow cartilage over areas of exposed bone, many surgeons use an arthroscopic technique called microfracture to induce bleeding from the base of the cartilage lesion and stimulate a natural cartilage-repair response. When successful, these so-called "resurfacing" procedures can re-stabilize the joint and slow the progression of osteoarthritis. To improve the current standard of care, we have developed therapeutic implants which are made of patient whole blood mixed with chitosan, a biopolymer that contains glucosamine. Our research has shown that chitosan helps repair damaged bone and cartilage by