NORFOLK, Va. – (May 12, 2017) Atlantic Orthopaedic Specialists’ Bradley Butkovich, MD, FAAOS, recently performed Hampton Roads’ first single-stage surgery for autologous cartilage implantation at Bon Secours DePaul Medical Center. The procedure uses the Reveille® Cartilage Processor, a new technology that allows physicians to implant healthy cartilage cells in a matter of minutes.
Autologous cartilage implantation (ACI) is a new procedure that allows orthopaedic surgeons to treat knee cartilage injuries using the patient’s own healthy cartilage. Sports injuries and aging can damage knee cartilage, causing pain and loss of function. Because cartilage cannot heal well by itself, new surgical techniques aim to stimulate the growth of new cartilage, relieving pain and restoring knee function.
“Before we had this new technology, cartilage implantation involved two surgeries. The first surgery collected healthy cartilage cells. These cells spent several weeks growing in a solution before they were replanted in the knee during a second surgery,” says Dr. Butkovich. “We now have the ability to collect the cells, extract them in a two-minute process and then replant them in one surgical step. This new procedure saves the patient’s time, reduces the risks associated with multiple surgeries and helps patients to recover more quickly.”
Dr. Butkovich has often brought innovative surgeries to Hampton Roads. He was one of the first orthopaedic surgeons in the state of Virginia to perform cartilage repair and restoration procedures, as well as leading edge ACL reconstruction and graft augmentation using Platelet Rich Plasma and the Flash Technique. Dr. Butkovich’s arthroscopic and sports medicine expertise also includes knee arthroscopy, multi-ligament knee injuries, cartilage restoration and foot & ankle and upper extremity surgery. Dr. Butkovich is one of only a few surgeons in Hampton Roads to have completed an accredited Sports Medicine Fellowship and to have received separate Board Certification in Sports Medicine through the American Board of Orthopaedic Surgeons.
