Osteochondritis Dissecans of the Trochlear Groove in Male Soccer Athlete
Michael Boisselle
Pathology and Evaluation I
Dr. Sterner
Osteochondritis Dissecans of the Trochlear Groove in Male Soccer Athlete
By Michael Boisselle
Objective: To present a case of osteochondritis dissecans that occurred in a 20-year-old
male while on a run. In this case the individual’s lesion was located on the medial aspect
of the lateral trochlear groove of his left knee. Background: In this case the individual
was not seen or evaluated until one week after he sustained the injury. He walked with an
obviously impaired gait with severe pain. He recalled the injury involving a valgus force
while stepping off the curb during a run; at the time of injury he heard a “pop”.
Assessment of the individual was limited due to the extreme pain when pressure was put
on the knee. However, a true positive of Patella Apprehension test was noted, and the
extreme pain over the trochlear groove indicated that a MRI must be done to determine
the damage done to the knee. Differential Diagnosis: Due to the “pop” the first
pathology that came to mind was a subluxed patella. However, with such effusion on the
lateral side of knee, an MRI was done and showed signs of patella subluxation as well as
a lesion on the trochlear groove that was completely separated from the surface.
Treatment: Range of motion exercises were implemented to keep from joint stiffness;
the patient performed many open kinetic chain exercises to strengthen the injured legs
quadriceps muscles. Uniqueness: Due to the location of the lesion and importance for the
individual to play, non-operative measures were taken. However the patient was
noncompliant and never listened to medical professionals. Conclusion: The noncompliant athlete has not yet fully recovered after four months, If he had continued to do
rehab as instructed and follow the orders of the medical staff he could have potentially
been back within 4-6 weeks. Key Words: osteochondritis dissecans, trochlear groove,
soccer player, knee injuries, non-surgical treatment
Pathology: A term Konig first used in 1888, “osteochondritis dissecans” described a
pathology that led to the formation of loose bodies in the femoral region of the knee,
occurring with no evidence of previous trauma. Konig chose this term to refer to an
inflammation of the osteochondral joint surface1. Osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) is a
lesion of bone cartilage that is characterized by the separation of an osteochondral
fragment from the articular surface, an increasingly common cause of knee pain among
both adolescence and preadolescence individuals who are skeletally immature, most
commonly occurring in males age 10 to 20 years old2,3,4. The pathology involves the
progressive stages of an intact lesion to a potentially loose or separated fragment5.
Despite the prevalence of this disease, the etiology is still uncertain; some hypothesizes
include chronic trauma, ischemia, genetic factors, endocrine related causes, and repetitive
microtrauma4,1,2. It has been concluded that in most cases of juvenile OCD high activity
levels were recurrent1. OCD is separated into two classes, juvenile and adult, each
characterized by the closing of the epiphyses2. OCD can occur at numerous joint
articulations, though the femoral condyles are the most common site. More specifically,
75% to 85% of all accounts of OCD of femoral condyles occur at the medial femoral
condyle1,4. Fairbank proposed that the medial femoral condyle is the common site of
OCD due to the repetitive impingement of the tibial spine on the lateral aspect of the
medial femoral condyle during internal rotation of the tibia1. OCD of the lateral femoral
condyle can be associated with the reduction of a dislocated patella1. OCD can be divided
into stages based on arthroscopic findings (See figure A; Appendix 1)1. This includes:
stage I, irregularity and softening of articular cartilage; stage II, articular cartilage
breached, definable fragment, not displaced; stage III, articular cartilage breached,
definable fragment, displaceable, but attached by some overlying articular cartilage; stage
IV, loose body1. Treatment of OCD is controversial in both adult and juvenile OCD when
determining whether operative or non-operative treatment is more beneficial. However,
any instable lesions in stages III or IV require surgical intervention regardless of age1. In
this case the individual has a stage IV lesion on the medial aspect of the lateral trochlear
groove. Since this location does not bear the weight of the body, the individual has the
opportunity to let the lesion heal without surgical intervention. In doing so he would be
able to participate in athletic activity approximately half-way through the season.
Personal Data: This case of osteochondritis dissecans occurred in a twenty-year-old
male. The individual is 6 feet tall (182.8 centimeters) and weighs 170 pounds (77
kilograms). As a sophomore at Rowan University, he is an active participant of the
Division III soccer program. He is right foot dominant in the sport of soccer. The injury is
to the medial aspect of the lateral trochlear groove of the left knee.
History: The athlete recalls the time of injury and mechanism. He emphasizes that he has
injured the knee previously during both his junior and senior year of high school; the
diagnosis of both injuries was a partial ACL rupture. As for the current injury, the
individual was running around the campus on the sidewalk; upon crossing a street, he
went to step off of the sidewalk and awkwardly planted his foot off the curb,
experiencing what was described as a valgus force that caused his left knee to buckle.
After the initial injury he continued for about 100 yards. At that time the pain was too
agonizing and he walked the rest of his way. The patient did describe hearing a “pop” at
the time of the injury. He went on for a few days without getting evaluated, while
keeping an eye on the injury, icing and elevating it throughout the day. He mentions a
large amount of swelling as result to the injury. After about one week the pain became so
unbearable he couldn’t sleep through the night. He went to the hospital, where he was
then referred to a specialist. A week and a half after initial injury he was seen in the
athletic training room and evaluated by the staff, from there he was sent for an MRI.
Physical Examination: The individual walked into the athletic training room with a
noticeably impaired gait. Observation of the involved knee showed little ecchymosis and
no deformity. However, there was a great amount of effusion at the injury site. The
individual was severely point tender over the lateral femoral condyle and lateral joint line
of the knee. He rated the pain a 10/10, ten being the worst pain he has ever felt. Palpation
of the trochlear groove presented the individual with extreme pain. There were severe
limitations in the range of motion assessment due to pain. Deficits in strength were about
3/5 for both knee flexion and extension. Circulation and neurological evaluations were all
within the normal limits. As each special test was performed, false positives of pain
became prevalent and the individual became apprehensive due to pain. Loch Mans was
performed with no positive findings. Valgus stress tests were positive for pain due to the
pressure put on the lateral aspect of the knee. Varus stress test was also positive for pain
but difficult to tell end feel due to the apprehensiveness of the athlete. Patella
apprehension test was positive causing extreme pain over the medial patellar retinaculum.
This, along with the patient hearing a “pop”, suggests a patella subluxation at the time of
injury. Other tests performed could not provide conclusive pathologies due to pain. The
athlete was sent to get an MRI for better evaluation.
Results of MRI: The MRI showed that the cartilage of the medial aspect of the trochlear
groove on the lateral side had a decent sized lesion in which the lesion is detached from
the surface. Also the patella’s posterior surface appeared damaged. The abnormal
showing of the posterior surface of the patella indicates that the patella most likely
subluxed at the time of the injury.
Diagnosis: The valgus force created while he stepped off the curb caused a patella
subluxation, which, in turn, caused a lesion of the cartilage on the femoral trochlear
groove. This resulted in osteochondritis dissecans on the trochlear groove. With the MRI
results, as well as other assessments performed, I confidently diagnosed the individual
with OCD on the trochlear groove that is associated with stage IV lesion.
Treatment: Treatment for adult OCD most commonly involves surgical intervention to
promote proper healing to prevent degenerative joint disease at an early age; the adult
knee rarely heals from OCD without surgical intervention1,3,5. With OCD there are
important factors that must be factored into deciding not to undergo a surgical procedure;
this mainly includes the ability of the injured individual to be compliant and stay
motivated throughout the lengthy and sometimes frustrating road to recovery1. In this
case the individual has chosen the non-operative path to recovery and was able to do so
due to the location of the lesion. Immediate treatment for the individual included rest
with minimal weight-bearing activities and repetitive ice and elevation until seen by a
physician. The individual was told to refrain from any strenuous activity for 4 to 6 weeks
and to allow the healing process to run its course. Regardless of instruction by physicians
and athletic trainers, the individual continually disobeyed orders not to take part in any
running and strenuous activity, further delaying the healing process. There were times
during the season that the athletic training staff had to take him away from the field and
explain the severity of his injury. Regardless of disobeying orders, the individual
continued rehabilitation programs. The rehabilitation program included daily range of
motion exercises as well as well as isometric exercises to build up the strength in the
injured leg, specifically the quadriceps femoris4. The goal of the rehabilitation was to
regain the strength of the quadriceps that atrophied due to the injury; the goal is to bring
the injured leg back to within at least 20 percent of the uninvolved leg. Another goal was
to bring down the significant amount of effusion until measurements matched that of the
non-involved limb. Patient continued to follow treatment for about one month, then
stopped doing treatment regularly and continued to disobey orders not to practice or run.
Due to the already rare chance of full recovery for adults with OCD and the noncompliance of the individual, he will most likely find himself needing surgical repair.
Criteria for Return: For this individual to return to activity, he most follow and keep up
with all rehabilitation programs and listen to medical professionals concerning what to
do, as well as what he should not be doing. Along with compliance, before return the
individual needs to show that he can perform full ranges of motion with the absence of
pain. The swelling of the involved knee must be within proportions to the involved side,
as well as the strength of his quadriceps should also be equal bilaterally. After that
criterion is meet, he must be able to perform sport specific (in this case soccer) activities
without pain and the absence of swelling following activity. The final permission to
return to activity relies on diagnostic evidence (MRI) that shows the lesion has healed
and or a physician’s clearance for him to return to activity4.
Importance of This Study: OCD is a very important pathology to be familiar with. As
an athletic trainer it is important to be able to diagnose injuries as soon as possible to
prevent further injury. In the case of juvenile OCD, an early detection of the disease can
be the difference between operative and non-operative treatment; this is especially
important because, if not diagnosed until after skeletal maturity, the treatment becomes
much more complicated. In the case of this individual he had a form of OCD that was
not affected by the articulating surface of the tibiofemoral joint; thus the possibility for
recovery without surgical intervention would be plausible. This particular case has great
importance when evaluating the subject of non-compliant patients. This case exemplifies
how important it is to discuss with the individuals the options they have; in this case the
option to discuss is whether or not to have surgery. After hearing what is expected of him
through the length of the recovery, maybe through careful consideration he would have
realized that he has the option to recover without surgical intervention due to the area of
the lesion. It would have been possible to heal in as soon as 4-6 weeks if pursuing the
non-surgical option properly whereas the surgical option could take over 16 months to
fully recover from depending on method or surgery. However, due to the patient’s
noncompliance the healing process was further delayed and will continue to be delayed
until proper care is taken.
Conclusion: This was a very unique case of OCD due to the location of the lesion.
Because of the location, a pathology that usually needs to be repaired surgically can be
given a chance of a full recovery without surgical intervention. However the recovery is
very dependent on the athlete’s ability to be compliant. Through this study the most
important conclusion is the importance of the athlete-athletic trainer relationship and the
ability for athletic trainers to thoroughly discuss the treatment plan with the injured
individual. Without the compliance of the athlete, the healing process is prolonged and
the individual will be at higher risk of numerous other pathologies.
Appendix 1
Figure A- Staging of osteochondral lesions1.
Stage I
Stage III
Stage II
Stage IV
Reference Page
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