From the Popular Press: What Your Patients are Reading

At the Massachusetts General Hospital sports medicine center, physicians are performing research and experiments that might soon be evident on the fields of professionals sports teams. A new technique for anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction was recently performed on the knee of a cadaver in an effort to produce a strong and stable reconstructed knee for injured athletes. Ankle repair work has also been pioneered at MGH, benefiting athletes such as Curt Schilling, who returned to play baseball after an injury that previously would have put an end to his career. The ultimate goal is to develop procedures that will offer patients a less invasive option, a better outcome, and a quicker recovery period. Current research is heavily focused on ligaments and biomechanics to make joints more stable. Physicians hope  to not only repair joints for current athletes to extend their careers but to prevent the development of arthritis later on in life. Additional research at MGH in their musculoskeletal tissue engineering laboratory centers around regenerative replacement cartilage for joint repair. Cartilage and bone marrow cells are being used to produce replacement cartilage that is as durable and strong as natural cartilage. Athletes are already extending their careers because of the innovative procedures and materials being pioneered at MGH, and soon MGH hopes to have completely revolutionized the field of sports medicine.

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