Research Article
Are Applied Growth Factors Able to Mimic the Positive Effects of Mesenchymal Stem Cells on the Regeneration of Meniscus in the Avascular Zone?
Table 1
Scoring system for the evaluation of the quality of meniscal repair tissue.
| | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| Defect filling | No fill | <25% | 25–75% | >75% |
| Surface | No surface | ruptured | Fissured/fibrillated | Meniscus-like |
| Integration | No integration | Partial, unilateral integration | Bilateral partial or unilateral complete integration | Bilateral complete integration |
| Cellularity | No cells | >10 cell clusters/slide | No cell cluster/slide, cell-ECM-ratio >0,5 | Meniscus-like cell-ECM-ratio |
| Cell morphology | No cells | <25% meniscus-like cells | 25–75% meniscus-like cells | >75% meniscus-like cells |
| Content of proteoglycan | No staining for proteoglycan | <25% | 25–75% | >75% |
| Content of collagen II | No staining for collagen II | <25% | 25–75% | >75% |
| Stability | No stability | Weak | Stable in shape | Stable to pressure and pulling stress |
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ECM: extracellular matrix.
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