Congenital hyperostosis in piglets: a consequence of a disorganization of the perichondrial ossification groove of Ranvier.

The combination of histopathological and microradiographic examination and fluorescence microscopy was used to study the pathophysiology of the thick leg syndrome of the piglet. The genesis and evolution of the lesions in radioulnar hyperostosis may be the result of an initial lesion situated at the anchorage site of the periosteum to the epiphysis at the level of the perichondrial ossification groove of Ranvier. In this way, a true separation appears, which in turn could be the cause of the fine supernumerary trabeculae of woven bone. The sequence of appearance of the lesions is discussed.