10-02-2015, 01:08 AM
(10-02-2015, 12:18 AM)fredtoast Wrote: I heard Mark Shlereth and another former player discussing their experiences with microfacture surgery. Basically they make fractures or holes in the bone. This causes the growth of a tough type of scar tissue that serves the purpose of the cartilage that was removed. It acts as bit of a cushion to keep the bones from grinding directly against each other. It can take up to a year for the tissue to form, but at this point there is no greater risk of re-injury. It is just a question of how much pain he can take. I am guessing burfict has already broken through the pain barrier. He was just too far behind in his conditioning due to the time he had to take off from training.
Apparently it is becoming more common. When Schlereth had it it was still relatively new procedure. Today most players recover, but they will always be playing with some level of pain. Even if the scar tissue grows like it is supposed to it is not as effective as the original cartilage.
Dr. Fred
