Clinical Course of Grafted Cartilage in Osteoarticular Frozen Autografts for Reconstruction After Resection of Malignant Bone and Soft-tissue Tumor Involving an Epiphysis

There are several options for biological reconstruction after bone tumor resection. If the tumor invades an epiphysis, the reconstruction is far more complicated because there is no option to restore large joint cartilage using currently available medical techniques. Frozen autograft with liquid nitrogen has been used as recycled autologous bone graft and the purpose of the present study was to assess the outcome of grafted cartilage in osteoarticular frozen autografts used in the treatment of patients with bone and soft-tissue sarcoma. We have treated 27 patients with cases of bone tumor resection involving an epiphysis where frozen autografts were used for reconstruction. If the tumor was located in a limited part of the epiphysis, partial resection of the epiphysis was performed to preserve the healthy part of the cartilage in 4 cases. The survival of grafted frozen cartilage was assessed by X-ray imaging. The end point was defined as grade IV of the Kellgren and Lawrence osteoarthritis grading system and was recorded using the Kaplan-Meier method. In case of removal of grafted bone after the surgery, pathological findings were assessed by hematoxylin and eosin staining of sections of resected cartilage in available cases to observe the fate of grafted cartilage over time. The postoperative mean follow-up period was 94.0 months. Grade IV osteoarthritis occurred in 12 patients. All patients in the partial epiphyseal freezing group survived compared with only 1 patient in the total epiphyseal freezing group who had survived to the final follow up ( < 0.01). Resected specimens with grafted cartilage were examined histologically. A sample excised after 14 months had dead cartilage with empty lacunae and the surface of the cartilage had reactive fibrous tissue. Grafted cartilage of frozen osteoarticular autografts was worn out over time. However, intraepiphyseal resection preserving partial healthy cartilage resulted in excellent survival. This technique requires careful planning of the surgery but might be an alternative to megaprosthesis.