There is a new knee procedure, just approved by the FDA in 2016, that is starting to gain popularity. It can help those with knee cartilage damage not associated with osteoarthritis, such as athletes or individuals who would like to avoid (or don’t qualify for) knee replacement surgery. The procedure involves growing new cartilage to help repair the damaged, resulting in stronger knees and much less pain. The treatment was created by Vericel Corp., which specializes in tissue engineering.

The procedure is done by taking a Tic Tac-size biopsy of the patient’s healthy knee cartilage and extracting cartilage cells from it (called chondrocytes). Those cells are then bathed in proteins and nutrients for ten days to support growth. Next, techs seed millions of these cells onto a small sheet of biodegradable collagen, which is cut to the size of the damage and glued onto the damaged cartilage through a small incision. This process is called matrix-induced autologous chondrocyte implantation, or MACI.

Once adhered, the cells grow through the collagen scaffold, which dissolves, and migrate through the damaged cartilage to the bone. The cells spur cartilage growth, effectively filling the damage gaps. This is a much less invasive procedure than a surgery and therefore is becoming more popular each year. However, it’s not inexpensive and may also be difficult to get insurance coverage for it due to how new it is. If you think this might be right for you, be sure to ask your doctor and get the details.

To learn more about Vericel and the MACI procedure, visit their website.

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