[Dupuytren contracture].

The paper is a summary of today's knowledge of Dupuytren's contracture and describes in short the clinical aspect, the spontaneous course, the differential diagnosis and the pathophysiological factors. It shows that during the last 100 years there has only been little progress in the fundamental understanding. The pathophysiological discoveries still have no consequence for the practical treatment. Until now, there is no alternative to surgical therapy in the sense of a therapy of causes; however, thanks to a number of technical refinements, the results of surgical treatment could be substantially improved, even in patients of old age.