It is well known that the capacity of articular cartilage for repair is limited. There have been many attempts to address this problem. However, treatment options are limited and the long-term outcome is uncertain. This article will focus on the osteochondral autograft transplantation (OAT), which is currently the only surgical cartilage repair technique that provides and retains proper hyaline articular cartilage. Osteochondral autograft transplants have been associated with a good rate of success, but further long-term follow-up and biomechanical evaluation are essential.
Limitations: size and depth of osteochondral defects, availability of donor autologous grafts, potential for damaging donor sites, the dead spaces between circular grafts and integration of donor and recipient hyaline cartilage.