Solitary bone cyst of the calcaneus

Ten cases of solitary bone cyst are presented. Nine of the lesions were asymptomatic and were discovered incidentally. Two patients were operated upon while eight were followed for 1 to 14 years. In spite of severe foot injuries that three patients have sustained, no fracture of the calcaneus occurred. We also showed experimentally that the strength of the calcaneus is not significantly reduced by the presence of the cyst. Therefore operative intervention in this lesion is not recommended. Acknowledgements: We wish to thank Dr. M. Carakostas, Consultant Orthopaedic Surgeon at Asclepeion Hospital, Athens, for allowing us to present Case 6 and Mr. St. Paipetis, Professor of the Polytechnic School of Athens, for his adivce during the experimental work.