title: Arthroscopy and patellar chondropathy.
abstract: Arthroscopy has proved to be a reliable method to determine acute and chronic retropatellar damage to cartilaginous tissue. The discrepancy between clinical and radiological findings, subjective disorders, and the actual morphological changes, seem to make arthroscopy desirable in analysing an objective and documentable initial situation. Long-term examinations will have to show how reliable prognostic statements are, and how justifiable the operative or conservative measures indicated by arthroscopic examination can be.
mesh_terms: D002357:Cartilage Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis; D004724:Endoscopy; D006801:Humans; D007719:Knee Joint; D010329:Patella