TY - JOUR
T1 - Editorial Commentary
T2 - Radiographic Measurements of Knee Joint Space Are Inadequate for Demonstrating Chondral Restoration
AU - Grassbaugh, Jason A.
AU - Arrington, Edward D.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2020
PY - 2021/2
Y1 - 2021/2
N2 - Orthopaedic advancements into the 21st century will increasingly focus on chondral restoration to either halt or reverse degenerative processes. Researchers and clinicians will need tools beyond patient-reported outcomes to measure the effectiveness of these treatment efforts. The use of joint space width (JSW) as a surrogate for chondral restoration is inadequate. At a minimum, such observations must standardize load transmission across the joint to be useful. Simple, readily available, standardized, and clinically useful measures of knee chondral restoration would facilitate and accelerate advances in the field. For now, it may be that improvement in JSW after chondral restoration could be attributable to changes in mechanical alignment of the knee and not the chondral restoration. JSW is an inadequate surrogate for chondral restoration, and anyone doing a stress radiograph of a unicompartmental degenerative knee recognizes this point.
AB - Orthopaedic advancements into the 21st century will increasingly focus on chondral restoration to either halt or reverse degenerative processes. Researchers and clinicians will need tools beyond patient-reported outcomes to measure the effectiveness of these treatment efforts. The use of joint space width (JSW) as a surrogate for chondral restoration is inadequate. At a minimum, such observations must standardize load transmission across the joint to be useful. Simple, readily available, standardized, and clinically useful measures of knee chondral restoration would facilitate and accelerate advances in the field. For now, it may be that improvement in JSW after chondral restoration could be attributable to changes in mechanical alignment of the knee and not the chondral restoration. JSW is an inadequate surrogate for chondral restoration, and anyone doing a stress radiograph of a unicompartmental degenerative knee recognizes this point.
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U2 - 10.1016/j.arthro.2020.11.012
DO - 10.1016/j.arthro.2020.11.012
M3 - Editorial
C2 - 33546803
AN - SCOPUS:85100078463
SN - 0749-8063
VL - 37
SP - 669
EP - 671
JO - Arthroscopy - Journal of Arthroscopic and Related Surgery
JF - Arthroscopy - Journal of Arthroscopic and Related Surgery
IS - 2
ER -