Dr. Cabot, you direct the Cabot Group and have dedicated much of your life to the knee, having organized numerous national and international courses and presided over the Spanish Knee Society and the Spanish Arthroscopy Association. What would you highlight about knee problems?
The most important thing is a correct and complete diagnosis to facilitate the most suitable treatment in each case. MRI is not enough and must be complemented by the correct examination by the traumatologist. There are two large groups of pathologies: the traumatic consequences of accidents or sports injuries and the degenerative ones such as osteoarthritis.
What solutions can be offered?
In addition to those already known such as physiotherapy and symptomatic medications, I want to highlight the regenerative treatments that resolve a large number of cases. When they are not enough, surgical techniques such as arthroscopy and prosthesis implantation are excellent solutions.
Dr. Gabriel Oliver, you direct the Knee Unit of an important university hospital in Barcelona. As head of the surgical area at Grupo Cabot, what techniques would you highlight?
Arthroscopy has advanced a lot in everything related to cartilage transplantation, meniscal suturing and ligamentoplasties. The single or total prostheses that we reserve for wear and osteoarthritis problems have experienced significant improvements. And osteotomy is an excellent technique when it is well indicated. Apart from the materials and designs that continually improve, the aids with new kinematic, navigation and robotic technologies allow us to adjust the implantation of prostheses with great precision. Replacement of the original knee is sought when it had not yet been affected. This way we achieve improvements in results, short admission and quick recovery.
Dr. Jaume Llort, you are responsible for non-surgical treatments. What would you highlight about regenerative treatments? They solve or improve 60-80% of osteoarthritis and chondropathy problems. Its application is simple, it does not usually affect the dynamics of normal life and it does not close doors to more aggressive therapies. The range of therapeutic processes is varied: from growth factors to stem cells, through the application of monocytes or prolotherapy, which if necessary are combined with ozone therapy, hyaluronic acid or neural therapy. Each patient has their ideal regenerative therapy.
The treatments, better from least to most aggressive, do not rush. And trust your traumatologist.
