Chondral and Osteochondral Injuries of the Knee

Description: - articular cartilage injury and potential for repair;
- rotational forces in direct trauma is the most common cause of injury to the articular cartilage;
- in adults, the tidemark zone is the weak link between the overlying cartilage and subchondral bone and therefore shearing injuries most often produce a chondral injury rather than an osteochondral injury;
- in most cases injury is in wt bearing regions of articular cartilage, and usually in the medial compartment (4 times more common that lateral injuries);
Wheeless' Textbook of Orthopaedics