Method and implant for replacing damaged meniscal tissue

1. A method for replacing damaged meniscal tissue, comprising:

performing an incision permitting a surgical access to at least one of the menisci in a knee joint;

cutting away a portion of a native meniscus so that a rim of native meniscus material at the outer side of the native meniscus remains;

obtaining a meniscus implant including a porous body having a plurality of open cavities spaced along the porous body for receiving native meniscus material and a plurality of interconnected open micro-pores in fluid communication with the open cavities;

obtaining one or more pieces of a native meniscus, wherein the pieces are punched out of the cut away portion of the patient's native meniscus;

inserting the pieces of native meniscus into the cavities in the meniscus implant;

inserting the meniscus implant between a respective femoral condyle and the tibial plateau in a patient's knee joint so that an outer convex peripheral surface of the porous body abuts an inner concave side of the rim of remaining native meniscus material;

fixing the meniscus implant to the rim of native meniscus material; and

closing the incision.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the pieces of native meniscus are cylindrical or prismatic.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the cavities of the meniscus implant have a diameter d, and wherein the step of obtaining one or more pieces of native meniscus further comprises:

punching out the native meniscus to have a diameter D greater than the diameter d of the cavities of the meniscus implant.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein the cavities of the meniscus implant penetrate through the porous body from an upper surface to a lower surface of the porous body and wherein the porous body further comprises transverse passages penetrating through the porous body and through the cavities from the outer convex peripheral surface to an inner concave peripheral surface.

5. The method of claim 4 further comprising the step of:

fixing the pieces of native meniscus within the cavities of the porous body by leading a suture through the transverse passages, through the pieces of native meniscus, and through the rim of native meniscus.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the suture is led through the transverse passages and through the pieces of native meniscus in a meandering path.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the cavities of the meniscus implant penetrate into the porous body from the outer convex peripheral surface.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising the step of:

fixing the pieces of native meniscus within the cavities of the porous body by gluing the pieces into the cavities.

9. The method of claim 8 , further comprising the step of:

fixing the pieces of native meniscus within the cavities of the porous body by gluing a grid or a membrane on the outer convex peripheral surface over each cavity.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising the steps of:

drilling a bore hole from a side surface of the tibia through the tibial plateau at the former attachment site of a horn of the native meniscus; and

fixing a horn of the meniscus implant to the tibia with a suture led through the bore hole.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the interconnected pores of the porous body are filled with a hydrogel-like substance containing cells.

12. A method for replacing damaged meniscal tissue, comprising:

performing an incision permitting a surgical access to at least one of the menisci in a knee joint;

cutting away a portion of a native meniscus so that a rim of native meniscus material at the outer side of the native meniscus remains;

obtaining a meniscus implant including a substantially C-shaped porous body comprising an outer convex peripheral surface, an inner concave peripheral surface, an upper surface, a lower surface, and a cross-sectional area in a plane orthogonal to the lower surface which tapers from the outer convex peripheral surface to the inner concave peripheral surface, the porous body having a plurality of open cavities spaced along the porous body for receiving native meniscus material and a plurality of interconnected open micro-pores in fluid communication with the open cavities;

obtaining one or more pieces of a native meniscus, wherein the pieces are punched out of the cut away portion of the patient's native meniscus;

inserting the pieces of native meniscus into the cavities in the meniscus implant;

inserting the meniscus implant between a respective femoral condyle and the tibial plateau in a patient's knee joint so that the outer convex peripheral surface of the porous body abuts an inner concave side of the rim of remaining native meniscus material;

fixing the meniscus implant to the rim of native meniscus material; and

closing the incision.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the cavities of the meniscus implant have a diameter d, and wherein the step of obtaining one or more pieces of native meniscus further comprises:

punching out the native meniscus to have a diameter D greater than the diameter d of the cavities of the meniscus implant.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein the cavities of the meniscus implant penetrate through the porous body from the upper surface to the lower surface of the porous body and wherein the porous body further comprises transverse passages penetrating through the porous body and through the cavities from the outer convex peripheral surface to the inner concave peripheral surface.

15. The method of claim 14 further comprising the step of:

fixing the pieces of native meniscus within the cavities of the porous body by leading a suture through the transverse passages, through the pieces of native meniscus, and through the rim of native meniscus.