This may actually be the best solution I’ve seen so far for cartilage repair because it addresses one of the gaps in current care. The article explains the problem with current therapy:
Microfracture — a surgery in which tiny holes are punched in a bone near the injured cartilage to stimulate a person’s stem cells to emerge from bone marrow and grow new cartilage atop the bone — is the standard of care for cartilage repair, but for holes in cartilage caused by injury, the procedure often either fails to stimulate new cartilage growth or grows cartilage that is less hardy than the original tissue.
Tissues sometimes repair holes, and sometimes scar them over. A gel scaffold can convince the cells that they can successfully repair the tissue instead of producing scar tissue.
via Light-Activated Hydrogel Repairs Cartilage (photonics.com | Jan 2013 | Research & Technology).