Early physeal closure after femoral chondrodiatasis. Loss of length gain in 5 cases.

Abstract

Chondrodiatasis (symmetric physeal distraction) was carried out in 5 patients with short femora because of congenital dislocations of the hip joint (4 patients) and congenital shortening (1 patient). In all but 1 case the physis closed shortly after lengthening, and loss of gained length or further shortening ensued in all of them. Chondrodiatasis should be avoided in the subjects under 13 years of age with mild leg-length discrepancies.