WHAT ARE THE RISKS?

INFECTION is the main risk, as the meniscal transplant uses foreign tissue.

THERE can be a small risk of damage to blood vessels or nerves in the knee, as a lot of stitches are needed.

IN A small number of cases, the transplanted meniscus isn’t held properly in the knee and it can tear while it is healing, causing pain.

‘THE jury is slightly out on this one — it’s great that it has worked in this instance, but I feel it has a niche role,’ says Benedict Rogers, a consultant orthopaedic surgeon at Brighton & Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust.

‘There may be a long wait for a donor, as the donor cartilage must exactly match the patient knee.’