Osteochondral Allograft Transplantation / OCA

An Osteochondral Allograft Transplantation or OCA procedure is when you are able to take bone and cartilage from a donor (allograft) and implant it into a damaged area of cartilage. The procedure is performed in a single stage. Cartilage is removed from a portion of the body part in a donor which would correspond generally to the size and location of the recipient site.

Who is a candidate for an Osteochondral Allograft Transplantation / OCA procedure?

Most of the time, the OCA procedure can be performed on lesions greater than or equal to 2.5 cm2. However, ultimately the damaged cartilage area size, location, and specific patient factors will determine if you are a candidate for this procedure.

Is an Osteochondral Allograft Transplantation / OCA procedure safe?

Yes. However, anytime you receive tissue from a donor there is a theoretical risk of disease transmission. Our best estimates are 6 in 1 million risk for viral transmission, and less than 1% chance of bacterial infection.

What are the outcomes of Osteochondral Allograft Transplantation / OCA procedures?

In general, an OCA procedure demonstrates superior outcomes to microfracture techniques. A clinical study looking at 68 patients undergoing isolated OCA transplantation demonstrated significant clinical improvements and graft survival of 88.2% at 5.2 years.

Bibliography

Ng, Vincent Y. “Risk of disease transmission with bone allograft.” Orthopedics 35.8 (2012): 679-681.

Analysis of Defect Size and Ratio to Condylar Size With Respect to Outcomes After Isolated Osteochondral Allograft Transplantation. Am J Sports Med. 2019 Jun;47(7):1601-1612. doi: 10.1177/0363546519841378. Epub 2019 May 9.