Osteochondritis dissecans of the knee in athletes Relevance and stage-adjusted treatment

The treatment of osteochondritis dissecans (OD) of the knee represents a not uncommon challenge in the clinical routine. This is especially the case for physically active patients, players in mass sports and competitive athletes as the long recovery times associated with the treatment of OD are often not compatible with the heightened expectations of young athletes. In such cases, the treatment of OD is normally stage adjusted. This requires a temporally adapted and individual treatment concept. Despite the existing treatment guidelines, the decision for conservative or surgical treatment is not infrequently complicated by the limited diagnostic accuracy of the imaging procedures. As the current scientific literature on the ability of patients to resume sporting activities after OD and the influence of the strain of the sport on the short-term and long-term outcomes after OD treatment is low, further high-quality clinical studies are needed.