Long-Term Outcomes of Arthroscopically Verified Focal Cartilage Lesions in the Knee: A 19-Year Multicenter Follow-up with Patient-Reported Outcomes.

Background: Focal cartilage lesions (FCLs) are frequently found during knee arthroscopies and may impair quality of life (QoL) significantly. Several treatment options with good short-term results are available, but the natural history without any treatment is largely unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs), the need for subsequent cartilage surgery, and the risk of treatment failure 20 years after diagnosis of an FCL in the knee.

The Long-Term Risk of Knee Arthroplasty in Patients with Arthroscopically Verified Focal Cartilage Lesions: A Linkage Study with the Norwegian Arthroplasty Register, 1999 to 2020.

Background: Focal cartilage lesions are common in the knee. The risk of later ipsilateral knee arthroplasty remains unknown. The purposes of the present study were to evaluate the long-term cumulative risk of knee arthroplasty after arthroscopic identification of focal cartilage lesions in the knee, to investigate the risk factors for subsequent knee arthroplasty, and to estimate the subsequent cumulative risk of knee arthroplasty compared with that in the general population.