Enchondrome at the knee
Enchondromas are tumors consisting of cartilage tissue which are benign in most cases. They most frequently occur in the finger area. Less frequently they are found in the area of the thigh and also the knee.Often enchondromas are completely asymptomatic, so they do not cause any symptoms.
However, if they grow in size, their mobility may be impaired. Especially if an enchondrome grows in the area of the knee joint, knee flexion can be difficult or painful above a certain size. In such cases, surgical removal should be attempted.
Before this, an imaging should be performed. First, an X-ray is usually taken. If the findings cannot be assessed sufficiently, a magnetic resonance examination can also be helpful.
Enchondromas that lie close to the stem, i.e. near the middle of the body, have a higher risk of degeneration than those that lie in the periphery. This means that an enchondrome of the knee has a higher risk of degeneration than an enchondrome of the fingers. For this reason, it is generally recommended to have an enchondrome of the knee either closely controlled or surgically removed.
Depending on the size of the tumor, the resulting tumor cavity must be filled with bone after removal. For this purpose, the patient’s own bone (for example from the iliac crest) or foreign bone can be used.
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