German scientists have discovered a new method of treating knee joints with the help of the nose
Doctors from the University Hospital of Würzburg in Germany have successfully tested a new method of treating knee injuries. According to a press release, as part of an initiative called ENCANTO, scientists have demonstrated the possibility of repairing damaged knee cartilage using tissue obtained from a patient’s nasal septum.
In the ENCANTO study, focal cartilage lesions were treated with cartilage tissue from the nose. These are locally limited and clearly defined injuries.
How cartilage is restored
As Dr. Oliver Pullig, the author of the project, explained, the process involves removing a small fragment of cartilage from the patient’s nasal septum. This fragment of cartilage is then cultured on a collagen matrix that supports the structure and implanted into the damaged knee four weeks later.
The injuries that ENCANTO doctors dealt with, for example, occur after an accident, i.e. in atypical situations. Now the studies include the most common cartilage lesions. First of all, doctors will check whether the developed method can become an alternative to prosthetics in the fight against such diseases as osteoarthritis (arthritis of the knee joint).
Scientists from the ENCANTO team are confident that if implants based on nasal septum tissue prove to be a viable alternative to prosthetics, it will revolutionize the treatment of cartilage damage. Previously, patients with such diagnoses were prescribed painkillers or had an artificial joint fitted.
Knee joint function impairment due to arthritis affects more than 500 million people worldwide, and this number continues to grow.
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