Voerman, D.S. (2025) “EVALUATING THE CLINICAL AND FUNCTIONAL IMPACT OF AUTOLOGOUS CHONDROCYTE IMPLANTATION IN KNEE CARTILAGE DEFECTS” A prospective cohort study. thesis, Medicine.
Full text available on request.Abstract
This prospective cohort study evaluated the clinical outcomes of Autologous Chondrocyte Implantation (ACI) using spheroids in patients with symptomatic cartilage defects of the knee, treated at the University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG). Between 2019 and 2023, 44 patients received ACI treatment, of whom 17 completed 12-month follow-up with patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs). PROMs included KOOS (subscales Pain, Symptoms, ADL, Sports, and QOL), Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for pain, and EQ5D-5L for health-related quality of life. After 12 months, all PROMs showed statistically significant improvement (p<0.0001). Median VAS pain decreased from 55 to 14 (–68%), EQ5D-5L increased from 0.717 to 0.887 (+24%), and KOOS subscales improved across all domains (e.g., Sports +100%, QOL +125%). Subgroup analyses based on defect size, location (tibiofemoral vs patellofemoral), origin (traumatic vs OCD), and whether osteotomy was performed showed no statistically significant differences, though trends favored traumatic defects and patellofemoral location. Notably, only EQ5D-5L showed a significant difference in favor of traumatic origin (p=0.038). This study confirms that ACI using spheroids leads to meaningful improvements in pain, function, and quality of life within 12 months, regardless of patient or defect characteristics. Although limited by small sample size and short follow-up, the results support the efficacy of ACI even in complex cases involving larger defects or concomitant procedures. Further multicenter collaboration with longer follow-up is needed to assess long-term outcomes and guide patient selection more precisely.
| Item Type: | Thesis (UNSPECIFIED) |
|---|---|
| Supervisor name: | Veen, Dr. H.C. van der and Vrijssen, Dr. J. |
| Faculty: | Medical Sciences |
| Date Deposited: | 20 May 2026 13:54 |
| Last Modified: | 20 May 2026 13:54 |
| URI: | https://umcg.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/3956 |
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