[The stress of the human hip joint. VI. A functional analysis of the cartilage thickness in the human femoral head (author's transl)].

The distribution of cartilage thickness was ascertained in 11 femoral heads. The greatest thickness of cartilage was always found lateral of the fovea capitis at the medial margin of the pressure area ("Druckbündelzone") of the cancellous bone, whereas the dorsomedial part of the head showed a zone of thinning, extending to the medial margin of the fovea capitis. The decrease in cartilage thickness occurred less rapidly in the lateral part of the joint than in the medial part. In the case of coxa vara, a changed pattern of cartilage thickness was observed, with a maximum thickness located more towards the lateral edge of the cartilage and a reduction in cartilage at the lateral margin of the fovea. The results are put in relation to the stress of the hip joint and are explained according to Pauwels' conceptions of the causal histogenesis and preservation of the mesenchymal supporting tissues. Differences in cartilage thickness are discussed as being a functional adaptation to local stress.