Engineered Osteochondral Grafts Using Biphasic Composite Solid Free-Form Fabricated Scaffolds

Abstract

lage often necessitate surgical intervention after injury or degenerative disease. [1]2][3][4][5] However, current therapies such as osteochondral grafting, chondroplasty, and prosthetic joint replacement have only partial or temporary success due to inadequate donor tissue availability, donor site morbidity, the risk of infection, abrasion of the cartilage surface, loosening of implants, and limited dura-bility of prosthetics. [6]7][8] Tissue-engineering approaches have the potential to overcome the lack of donor tissue and to create a graft that contains biologically and mechanically functional tissue.A variety of tissue-engineering techniques have been developed to regenerate bone and cartilage. 9-16These studies have illustrated that engineered cartilage must integrate with the host tissue, provide a smooth and natural articulating surface, and bear functional mechanical loads.In attempts to satisfy these requirements, investigators have used a variety of