[Does Osgood-Schlatter disease modify the position of the patella?]

The Blackburne and Peel method of assessing the position of the patella was applied to 185 knees with Osgood-Schlatter disease in 125 patients. The normal index of 0.80 was confirmed in 73 controlled knees. The average index in the knees with Osgood-Schlatter disease measured 1.01 (patella alta) in boys and 0.91 (normal) in girls. The value increased to 1.06 in boys with radiological evidence of loose ossicls in the tibial tuberosity or the patellar tendon. This finding indicates that the strong pull of the well developed quadriceps muscle in probably the most important aetiological factor in the patella alta associated with Osgood-Schlatter disease.