Cartilage lesions in the knee of adolescents and young adults: arthroscopic analysis.

In this article, the mechanism of occurrence and development of cartilage lesions as well as the relationship between pain and conditions of cartilage lesions will be discussed. The study was based on the findings from arthroscopic analyses, plain radiographs, and arthrograms. Sixty-five joints of 63 patients with cartilage lesions were examined. We have made the following conclusions. Cartilage lesions do not start necessarily from the surface layers of the cartilage. Lesions may originate in the subchondral bone and develop toward the surface, causing severe pain. Cartilage lesions, resulting in little pain, are related closely to joint instability, indicating that the lesion occurrence is affected by unnatural shearing stress rather than by direct force applied to the joint surface. Thus, prevention and treatment should focus on removing the shearing stress. The purpose of this article is to examine how cartilage lesions relate to patient symptoms. Additionally, untreated lesions possibly could develop into the early stage of osteoarthrosis of the knee, causing exposure of the subchondral bone and thus continuous pain.