Osteochondral allograft is one of the cartilage grafting techniques indicated in patients with articular cartilage damage in the knee to restore normal functioning of the joint. Cartilage grafting is a surgical procedure to replace the damaged cartilage with healthy cartilage taken from a donor or from the same patient harvested at the site that takes less weight of the body.
Osteochondral allograft is a grafting technique in which the damaged cartilage is replaced by a healthy cartilage taken from a donor or cadaver. This procedure is indicated in patients with larger articular cartilage defects and is done through open surgical procedure. In this procedure, the hyaline cartilage collected from cadaver is sterilized, prepared, and assessed for possibility of disease transmission. Then the allograft along with subchondral bone is transplanted into the damaged area. The graft is held to the damaged area with the help of metal screws or pins.
The main disadvantage of this method is limited availability of donor grafts. Other factors limiting the use of this technique are possibility of disease transmissions
This procedure is not recommended for patients with osteoarthritis.