Articular cartilage is the smooth, bearing surface covering all joints. When damaged, it usually fails to heal on its own—but with novel treatments, it can be fixed. That said, here are some of the ways that attempted repairs have gone wrong.

Microfracture—the surgical procedure during which small holes are made in joint bones—has resulted in successful temporary repairs for thousands of injured athletes. Unfortunately, the repaired tissues often wore out—leading to more joint pain.

Bone bruises are often the first, middle, or last step in the development of arthritis. The old thinking was to just let them heal. The new thinking tells us to treat both the bruise and the cause of it before it gets worse. Here is how.

The science of cartilage repair for joints is in full swing. There is a frenzy of activity around stem cells, growth factors, exosomes (small packets of growth factors), and all forms of stimulation therapies. And the matrices or patches that those factors are placed on vary widely. The bottom line is that no one factor does it all. Here is the latest update on what needs to go into the chicken soup of tissue repair to make you well.

You watch the ball. I watch the knees. Here is what I see:

Curvature of the leg bones don’t always need dramatic surgical operations. Replacing and repairing the missing shock absorbers makes more sense.

Arthritis is preventable. Yet until recently most people thought it was inevitable. Here are some examples of how to best treat your injured knee.

Though usually self-healing in the young, a tongue-twisting condition called Osteochondritis Dissecans (OCD) can mean more serious trouble for adolescents. Advances in knee surgery may move this injury, like many others, into the “curable” realm.

Stem cell-based therapies, in which the body’s own cells are stimulated to contribute to the repair process, are enormously promising in all areas of medicine, including articular cartilage regeneration. Yet our understanding of stem cells continues to evolve.

Microfracture is a surgical technique used to repair damaged articular cartilage by making multiple small holes in the surface of the joint to stimulate a healing response. Unfortunately, it's prone to failure. Here's why.

"Doc, does running hurt my knee?" The answer is no. Injury hurts your knee. If you're a runner, or if you're considering taking up running, here are some insights to help you protect your knees.

You are told you have knee arthritis. The advice the doctor gives you is to go home, rest your knee, take anti-inflammatory drugs, lose some weight, wait until you are older and then get an artificial knee replacement. This advice is awful. Here's why.

Traditionally, conservative care meant non-operative care. However, these days, conservative care often means that the insurance company has only authorized physical therapy or medications. This is not necessarily in your best interest.

We like to do everything possible to rebuild the knee joint with biologic tissues rather than artificial materials to help delay the time in which an artificial joint replacement is necessary.

If you have osteoarthritis, or if you think you may develop it later, you don’t have to just “suck up” the symptoms or change your life to manage the disorder. There is something that you can do about it, especially if you catch it early.