Pathogenesis and treatment of osteochondritis dissecans--an experimental study on chondral and osteochondral fractures in adult and young rabbits.

To observe the natural history of chondral injury and clarify the genesis of osteochondritis dissecans, various types of experimental osteochondral or chondral injuries were made on the articular surface of femoral condyles of adult and young rabbits. Pathological features resembling osteochondritis dissecans were frequently observed in young rabbits, especially in the groups in which the injured part was most unstable (58% in rabbits aged from 7 to 14 days, 24% in those aged from 3 to 7 weeks). Therefore, a neglected chondral injury in early childhood and following ossification disturbances may relate to this disease.