More Fancy Knee Words

It has been awhile, since I have laid out some fancy medical terms. So here goes the story of surgery number two. Picture it May 2010, persistent Left knee pain after Microfracture in September 2009. MRI showed no ligament injury but appeared the microfracture had failed.
Onwards to the Lateral Release: this procedure was done arthroscopically along with another chondroplasty of the patella. Autologous Chondrocyte implantation biopsy and Anterior interval release(infrapatellar contracture scarring release with infrapatellar plica release).
Myself and Dr Looney had already discussed ACI prior to this procedure and two tic tacs were obtained as well for Carticel. No, not breath mints but basically, healthy chondrocytes taken for growth equal to the size of a tic tac. Sounds good to me, does it work for you?
The patella defect now measured 2.5cm x 1cm and the medial femoral chondyle measured 2cm x 1cm and was a grade 4 defect.
This surgery resulted in a decrease in patella pain and was definitely the easiest of the two. A lot of people are reluctant to have a lateral release but for me it seems to have helped. I had some sharp pains near the trochlea but that was from the biopsy. The chondyle pain is still there but its on a weightbearing portion of my knee and nothing a lateral release could relieve, anyway.
After the surgery I was given 6 stitches, a ROM brace and thanks to a femoral nerve block, very little pain. Perhaps, I haven't warped your mind and sent you into a medical term coma,but rather given you some insite of the world of knee repair.