Weight-bearing cartilage is attached to the ends of your bones. Traumatic injuries can cause a small area of damage in otherwise excellent cartilage. The name of the damage is Osteochondritis Dissecans (OCD), Dissecans means dissection or to split apart.
I like to think OCD = Bone-Cartilage-Defect. Your orthopedic surgeon can fill this in with a plug of bone-cartilage from a low-demand area or a live bone graft. Both methods have a high success rate.
An MRI can identify if your OCD is repairable by this technique. So please ask your primary care person for a referral to an orthopedic surgeon who treats OCDs!
Walker Wynkoop, MD, is a resident of Los Banos and a Board-Certified Orthopedic Surgeon with 30 years of experience. Surgical Affiliates of California, 807 Illinois St, Los Banos. His email is Doc@Wynmd.com.
