Background:The relationship between biological tissue healing following knee injury or surgery and long-term clinical outcome has come to the forefront of sports medicine practice. This has led many knee surgeons to incorporate biologically mediated healing factors into the management of knee injuries. In particular, the clinical use of mesenchymal stem cells has opened new horizons.Evidence Acquisition:Relevant studies were identified through a search of PubMed from January 2000 to April 2011, combining the term mesenchymal stem cells with articular cartilage, anterior cruciate ligament, and meniscus. Relevant citations from the reference lists of selected studies were also reviewed.Results:Knee injury treatment with mesenchymal stem cells shows potential. Most reports represent animal model studies; few advances have been translated to human clinical applications.Conclusion:Mesenchymal stem cell use to promote healing following knee injury is likely to increase. There are scientific methodological concerns and ethical and legal issues regarding mesenchymal stem cell use for treating knee injuries.

No abstract

Background: Spontaneous shoulder-girdle pain and scapular winging/dyskinesis can be caused by several neuromuscular disorders identifiable by electrodiagnostic studies (EDX). We describe a group of adolescent athletes with this clinical presentation but normal EDX, followed by later development of neurogenic thoracic outlet syndrome (NTOS). Methods: We identified patients referred for evaluation of NTOS that had a history of chronic atraumatic shoulder-girdle pain, scapular winging/dyskinesis, and normal EDX. Each was refractory to conservative management and underwent supraclavicular decompression and brachial plexus neurolysis for NTOS. Functional disability was quantified by Quick Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand (QuickDASH) scores. Results: There were 5 female patients with a mean age at symptom onset of 14.2 ± 0.4 years, including spontaneous severe pain in the shoulder, scapula, and arm, along with prominent scapular winging/dyskinesis, and normal EDX. Symptoms had persisted for 18.9 ± 4.0 months prior to referral, with pronounced upper extremity disability (mean QuickDASH, 54.6 ± 6.9). By 3 months after surgical treatment for NTOS, all 5 patients experienced near-complete symptom resolution, including scapular winging/dyskinesis, with markedly improved function (mean QuickDASH, 2.2 ± 1.3) and a return to normal activity. Conclusions: A subset of patients with chronic atraumatic shoulder-girdle pain, scapular winging/dyskinesis, and normal EDX may develop dynamic brachial plexus compression characteristic of NTOS, exhibiting an ischemic “Sunderland-zero” nerve conduction block for which surgical decompression can result in rapid and substantial clinical improvement. The presence of surgically treatable NTOS should be considered for selected patients with long-standing scapular winging/dyskinesis who fail conservative management.

No abstract