What is a cartilage injury?
Cartilage injuries are common in athletes and can be seen in sports that require a lot of twisting and pivoting around the knee joint such as football and basketball. There are two types of cartilage within the knee joint: articular cartilage and meniscus. Articular cartilage coats the surface of the three bones that make up the knee joint: the femur, the tibia, and the patella (kneecap). The main purpose of articular cartilage is to provide a smooth surface for the bones to glide against one another and to act as a shock absorber. Injury to the articular cartilage can occur when there is a force applied to the cartilage that exceeds its capacity. Articular cartilage does not have a blood supply and must rely on the fluid in the knee joint called synovial fluid for its nutrients. Because of this the articular cartilage has very little capacity to repair itself when injured and can potentially progress to osteoarthritis. The meniscus is the other type of cartilage within the knee joint
