Relationship between chondromalacia patellae and joint hypermobility

Abstract EN

The study comprised 100 patients suffering from chondromalacia patellae, who were compared with another 100 normal individuals, matched for age and sex, and served as a control group.

The degree of joint mobility was scored on a scale graded from 0-9.

The number of individuals with hypermobile joints and the total score were significantly higher in patients with chondromalacia when compared to the control group (p < 0.001).

There were more hypermobile knees among patients with chondromalacia patellae when compared with the knees of the control group (p<0.01).

Chondromalacia patellae was bilateral in 53% of our patients.

It occurred more frequently in the longer legs and was associated with quadriceps muscle wasting in 46% of studied patients.

Flat feet were found significantly more often in patients when compared with the control group (p < 0.05).

In conclusion, we found that hypermobility of the knee joint may be considered as a contributing factor in the pathagenesis of chondromalacia patellae.