*3.2. Safety Assessment*

In the Kartigen® group, three patients exhibited three treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs): renal stone with hematuria, cervical spondylosis, and upper respiratory tract infection, respectively. In the control group, two patients demonstrated four TEAEs, including urinary tract infection, cataract, prostate hypertrophy, and coronary artery stenosis. All seven TEAEs were not treatment-related. These TEAEs are summarized in Table S3. By X-ray examination and MRI study, there was no inflammation, joint adhesion, loose body, or tumorigenesis in the Kartigen®-implanted knee and microfracture-treated knee. Physical examination and laboratory tests revealed no infection among the 15 patients. Moreover, neither mortality nor complications were noted after operations in this study. Some laboratory values were abnormal, such as blood sugar, GOT, GPT, and urinary red blood cell in both groups. However, they were felt to be reflective of each patient's underlying medical condition and not as results of participation in the study.
