Abstract
There are two scaffold products designed for meniscal reconstruction or substitution
of partial meniscal defects that are currently available in the Europe: the collagen
meniscal implant (CMI; Ivy Sports Medicine, Gräfelfing, Germany) and the polymer scaffold
(PS; Actifit, Orteq Bioengineering, London, United Kingdom). The CMI has demonstrated
improved clinical outcomes compared with baseline in patients with chronic postmeniscectomy
symptoms with follow-up ranging from 5 to more than 10 years. There are also several
comparative studies that report improved clinical scores in patients with chronic
medial meniscus symptoms treated with CMI versus repeat partial meniscectomy, and
a lower reoperation rate. Recently, PS insertion was shown to result in improved clinical
outcomes in patients with chronic postmeniscectomy symptoms of the medial or lateral
meniscus at short-term follow-up. However, there is currently no medium- or long-term
data available for the PS. The use of meniscal scaffolds in the acute setting has
not been found to result in improved outcomes in most studies. The authors' surgical
indications for meniscal scaffold implantation, preferred surgical technique, and
postoperative rehabilitation protocol are described.
Keywords
meniscal scaffold - meniscal substitution - partial meniscectomy
