Osteochondritis dissecans of the capitellum: autologous osteochondral mosaicplasty: a case report.

The etiology of osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) of the capitellum is unknown but has generally been attributed to repetitive microtrauma or ischemia. We present a case report of a handball player with OCD of the capitellum. Preoperatively, he complained of elbow pain. CT imaging showed the injury. This patient was treated with mosaicplasty harvested from the lateral femoral condyle. He returned to his full former sports activities within 6months of surgery. The continuity of the cartilage layer between the osteochondral graft and the capitellum was shown on CT arthrogram images at 12months after surgery. We believe that mosaicplasty gives successful results with end-stage OCD of the capitellum.