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Meniscal Lesions: Biologics

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Orthobiologics

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Abstract

The role of orthobiologics injections for the management of meniscal lesions has gained growing interest, thanks to their minimal invasiveness, the possibility to combine them with other treatments, and the not always satisfactory results of other available treatments. Corticosteroids, hyaluronic acid (HA), and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) represent interesting treatment options with specific rationale and different indications based on the type of meniscal tears and joint status. Currently, corticosteroids and HA injections find their main application as intra-articular injection in osteoarthritic knees with degenerative meniscal lesions, although results are still controversial. On the other hand, PRP presents a wider spectrum of actions than other biologic substances, including anabolic/regenerative properties, and showed a potential role also in the ultrasound-guided treatment of degenerative meniscal lesion, as well as to improve the success rate of meniscal repair procedures. However, literature findings are still preliminary and inconclusive, and biologic injective meniscus treatments require further higher-level studies to better understand their real efficacy and more appropriate indications for the management of meniscal lesions.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Clinica Ortopedica e Traumatologica II, IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Bologna, Italy

    Stefano Zaffagnini, Alberto Poggi, Luca Andriolo & Angelo Boffa

  2. Rizzoli Orthopaedic Institute, Bologna, Italy

    Giuseppe Filardo

  3. Università della Svizzera Italiana, Ente Ospedaliero Cantonale, Lugano, Switzerland

    Giuseppe Filardo

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  1. Stefano Zaffagnini
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  2. Alberto Poggi
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  3. Luca Andriolo
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  4. Angelo Boffa
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  5. Giuseppe Filardo
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Rizzoli Orthopaedic Institute, Bologna, Italy

    Giuseppe Filardo

  2. Orthopaedic & Sports Medicine Group, Santa Monica Orthopaedic & Sports Medicine, Santa Monica, CA, USA

    Bert R. Mandelbaum

  3. Orthopaedic Surgery and Biomedical Engineering, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, USA

    George F. Muschler

  4. Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, NY, USA

    Scott A. Rodeo

  5. Institute for Medical Science in Sports, Osaka Health Science University, Osaka, Japan

    Norimasa Nakamura

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Zaffagnini, S., Poggi, A., Andriolo, L., Boffa, A., Filardo, G. (2022). Meniscal Lesions: Biologics. In: Filardo, G., Mandelbaum, B.R., Muschler, G.F., Rodeo, S.A., Nakamura, N. (eds) Orthobiologics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-84744-9_23

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-84744-9_23

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