An orthopaedic surgeon introduces an innovative procedure for knee repair to the panhandle.
Orthopedic surgeon Eric Gardner, MD may have a remedy for patients suffering from cartilage injuries to the knee.
During his fellowship training at Cincinnati Sports Medicine and Orthopedic Center, Dr. Gardner learned how to perform cartilage restoration.
The Carticel procedure harvests a patient's own cells to repair non-arthritic cartilage injuries to the knee.
The procedure was introduced in Europe in 1984, but was not approved by the FDA and performed in America until 1997.
"With continued research and development," Dr. Gardner says, "we're hoping this is just going to get better and better...In that it's going to have more long–lasting beneficial affects for people to get rid of their pain and improve their quality of life."
Findings show that people who receive the Carticel procedure have a 70% - 80% return to their previous activity levels.
