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Incidental Enchondromas of the Knee

¹ Department of Radiology, Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, DC 20306.
² Department of Radiologic Pathology, Armed Forces Institute of Pathology, 6825 16th St. NW, Bldg. 54, Washington, DC 20306.
³ Department of Radiology, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, Bethesda, MD.

OBJECTIVE. The purpose of our study was to determine the prevalence of incidental enchondromas on routine MR knee imaging.

MATERIALS AND METHODS. We retrospectively reviewed 449 consecutive routine knee MR examinations for the presence of enchondromas. MRI was considered positive when a focal geographic area of lobular marrow replacement (nonsubchondral) was identified on T1 weighting and high signal intensity was seen on T2 weighting. Patients with enchondromas were further evaluated for demographics; lesion site, size, and relationship to the physeal plate; aggressive imaging features described with chondrosarcoma; concurrent internal derangement; and study indication.

RESULTS. The prevalence of incidental enchondromas was 2.9% on routine knee MR examinations. The prevalence was highest in the distal femur (2.0%), followed by the proximal tibia (0.7%) and the proximal fibula (0.2%). The average lesion size was 1.9 x 1.2 x 1.3 cm (57% of lesions were < 1 cm). Most lesions were located in the metaphysis (71%) or diaphysis (21%). Enchondromas were within 1.5 cm of the physeal plate in 72% of cases. No aggressive imaging features to suggest chondrosarcoma were seen. All patients had evidence of internal derangement as the cause of symptoms and the request for imaging.

CONCLUSION. Incidental enchondromas can be identified on 2.9% of routine MR knee examinations, most frequently in the distal femur (2.0%). This significant prevalence is much higher than in an autopsy series (0.2%), likely reflecting the increased sensitivity of MRI for detecting small lesions, and is important to recognize to avoid confusion with other pathologic entities.

Keywords: appendicular musculoskeletal system • biomedical statistics • enchondromas • MRI • radiologic-pathologic correlation

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