[Osteochondrosis dissecans tali. Results of surgical therapy]

Surgical treatment with arthrotomic revision, removal of the subchondral sclerosis, and autologous bone transplantation with restoration of the cartilage layer resulted in good results in nearly 70%. This could be demonstrated in a follow-up examination in 26 of 38 surgically treated patients. The outcome is dependent on the patient's age at the onset of symptoms and the stage of the cartilage lesions. In adolescents, the results are better than in adults and better in cases without or with only mild cartilage lesions. The most important etiological factors seem to be biomechanical factors such as a sprained ankle--even without ligament ruptures. Osteoarthritis of the ankle joint is not a common sequela, and it occurs in only mild degrees in adult patients.