
Osgood Schlatter Disease
Inflammation of the area just below knee causing pain, especially in growing children.
What is Osgood-Schlatter disease?
Osgood Schlatter Disease was named after the two physicians that first defined it in 1903 - Dr Robert Osgood from Ohio and Dr Carl Schlatter from Switzerland. Not, as is often thought, after the Chelsea footballer Peter Osgood!
What is Schlatter and what causes it?
Osgood Schlatter is caused by the pull of the powerful thigh and calf muscles on their respective tendons where they attach to the bone. Football, Rugby, Athletics, Hockey, Gym, netball and other strenuous activities such as dance and running can all initiate conditions.
What is Osgood Schlatter and ischial apophysitis?
Another closely related, although rarer, injury is Ischial Apophysitis which occurs in the hip bones where tendons attach muscles to the pelvic bones. Osgood Schlatter is caused by the pull of the powerful thigh and calf muscles on their respective tendons where they attach to the bone.
How long does Osgood Schlatter disease last?
Osgood–Schlatter disease. Osgood–Schlatter disease (OSD) is inflammation of the patellar ligament at the tibial tuberosity (apophysitis). It is characterized by a painful bump just below the knee that is worse with activity and better with rest. Episodes of pain typically last a few weeks to months.

Who was Osgood Schlatters?
Osgood-Schlatter disease is a condition that causes pain and swelling below the knee joint, where the patellar tendon attaches to the top of the shinbone (tibia), a spot called the tibial tuberosity. There may also be inflammation of the patellar tendon, which stretches over the kneecap.
Is Osgood-Schlatter an eponym?
Often throughout history, the simultaneous discovery of a disorder is described by two independent researchers, resulting in a hyphenated eponym. Such is the case in the observations made by two physicians, Robert Bayley Osgood and Carl Schlatter, concerning overuse injuries of the tibial tubercle in adolescents.
Is Osgood-Schlatter genetic?
Osgood-Schlatter disease is an osteochondrosis, which is a group of disorders of the growth plates that occur when the child is growing rapidly. Doctors are not sure what causes osteochondrosis, but the disorders do seem to run in families.
Is Osgood-Schlatter a disability?
The Veteran's Osgood-Schlatter disease of the left and right legs was initially assigned a noncompensable disability rating for each leg under Diagnostic Code 5262. 38 C.F.R. §4.71a.
Why is it called Osgood Schlatter's disease?
The condition is named after Robert Bayley Osgood (1873–1956), an American orthopedic surgeon, and Carl B. Schlatter (1864–1934), a Swiss surgeon, who described the condition independently in 1903.
Who discovered Osgood Schlatters?
In 1903, Robert Osgood (1873-1956), a US orthopedic surgeon, and Carl Schlatter (1864-1934), a Swiss surgeon, concurrently described the disease that now bears their names. Osgood-Schlatter disease (OSD) is a common causes of knee pain in active adolescents.
Does Osgood-Schlatter affect height?
The findings indicate a strong association between Osgood-Schlatter disease and patella alta. This increase in patellar height would require an increase in the force needed from the quadriceps to achieve full extension. This mechanism could be responsible for the apophyseal lesion.
Is Osgood-Schlatter permanent?
Osgood Schlatters will not cause permanent damage and will usually resolve when the child has reduced activity and stopped growing. It can, however, cause a bump to form on the shin bone underneath the tendon insertion.
Can you remove Osgood Schlatters bump?
A variety of conservative treatments are used in most cases, however surgical intervention can be successful for patients who have intolerable symptoms. Most surgical options of the Osgood-Schlatter disease include open procedures, while arthroscopic or direct bursoscopic excision has been reported.
Can you play football with Osgood Schlatter?
Can Teens With Osgood-Schlatter Disease Still Do Sports? Yes, teens with OSD can usually do their normal activities, including sports, as long as: The pain is not bad enough to interfere with the activity. The pain gets better within 1 day with rest.
Why is there a bone sticking out below my knee?
The point of attachment of the patella tendon to the shin bone is the bony bump (tibial tuberosity) just below the knee. Osgood-Schlatter syndrome (or disease) is a painful knee condition that tends to affect adolescents. Boys are affected more than girls, although this could be due to differing activity patterns.
Why does my bone stick out of my knee?
Bone spurs (osteophytes) in the knee are small bony outgrowths caused by excessive friction between the surfaces of the joint. This is most commonly caused by osteoarthritis which is characterized by a gradual loss in joint cartilage overtime.
How do you get Osgood-Schlatter disease?
How do people get Osgood-Schlatter disease? Children and adolescents get Osgood-Schlatter disease when they play sports that put repeated stress on the patellar tendon. There are certain activities –running and jumping—that cause your leg muscles to pull the patellar tendon, which pulls on the growth plate.
Can you play sports with Osgood-Schlatter?
Can Teens With Osgood-Schlatter Disease Still Do Sports? Yes, teens with OSD can usually do their normal activities, including sports, as long as: The pain is not bad enough to interfere with the activity. The pain gets better within 1 day with rest.
How does Osgood-Schlatter go away?
Osgood-Schlatter disease usually goes away when the bones stop growing. Typically, this is when a teen is between 14 and 18 years old.
How long does it take for Osgood-Schlatter to go away?
How Long Does Osgood-Schlatter Disease Last? Osgood-Schlatter disease usually goes away when the bones stop growing. Typically, this is when a teen is between 14 and 18 years old.
What age can you get Osgood Schlatter disease?
Children between the ages of 9 and 16 who are both physically active and in a "growth spurt" are most likley to suffer from Osgood Schlatter Disease. If unresolved it can be painful, of long duration, and have permanent detrimental effects both on the bone, as well as on a young athlete's potential.
How many knees does Osgood Schlatter affect?
This is where the body has tried to heal itself by laying down additional bone in the area. This is the typical signature of Osgood Schlatter and in about 75% only affects one knee but in 25% of cases can affect both.
What is the treatment for Osgood Schlatters?
Until recently the most common treatment for Osgood Schlatters Disease was abbreviated as "RICE". This stands for Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevation. Often non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS) are also recommended.
Who was the first doctor to name Osgood Schlatter's disease?
Medical conditions were traditionally named after the doctors who first described them and Osgood Schlatter’s Disease came from two doctors: Dr. Osgood and Dr. Schlatter. They called it a disease over a century ago in 1903. So the condition was named after them and the word ‘disease’ has stuck too until this day.
What is Osgood Schlatter's disease?
No active child wants to stop playing and participating in their sports which can lead to further pain and frustration. Osgood Schlatters Disease is in essence, a sports-related overuse injury in adolescents.
Why is Daniel Welbeck so swollen?
Daniel Welbeck was diagnosed with Osgood Schlatter disease in his youth, leaving him with excruciating pain and swelling in his knees. Doctors warned he should consider quitting soccer, claiming that continuing to train and play several times a week could cause ongoing pain and growth complications.
How old is too old to get Osgood Schlatters?
This usually occurs in their early teens. The most common age for Osgood Schlatters Disease is between 12 and 14 years old.
Which football players have suffered from Osgood Schlatters Disease?
UK Footballers Paul Scholes and Steven Gerrard suffered Osgood Schlatters Disease and went on to play premiership football and have both played for England.
Who is Robert Osgood?
Robert Osgood was a US orthopaedic surgeon who lived from 1873 to 1956. born in Massachusetts US. He received his undergraduate degree from Amherst College in 1895, and M.D. from Harvard Medical School in 1899.
Is Osgood Schlatters disease self limiting?
So although many books will tell you that Osgood Schlatters Disease is a ‘self-limiting’ condition that leaves little long term problems, most sufferer’s will tell you the opposite – that it severely affects their lives and can give rise to issues well into adulthood.
What causes Osgood-Schlatter disease?
Osgood-Schlatter disease is caused by irritation of the bone growth plate. Bones do not grow in the middle, but at the ends near the joint, in an area called the growth plate. While a child is still growing, these areas of growth are made of cartilage instead of bone. The cartilage is never as strong as the bone, so high levels of stress can cause the growth plate to begin to hurt and swell.
What age group is most affected by Osgood-Schlatter disease?
Athletic young people are most commonly affected by Osgood-Schlatter disease—particularly boys between the ages of 10 and 15 who play games or sports that include frequent running and jumping.
How is Osgood-Schlatter disease treated?
Osgood-Schlatter disease usually goes away with time and rest. Sports activities that require running, jumping or other deep knee-bending should be limited until the tenderness and swelling subside. Kneepads can be used by athletes who participate in sports where the knee might make contact with the playing surface or other players. Some athletes find wearing a patellar tendon strap below the kneecap can help decrease the pull on the tibial tubercle. Ice packs after activity are helpful, and ice can be applied two to three times a day, 20 to 30 minutes at a time, if necessary. The appropriate time to return to sports will be based on the athlete’s pain tolerance. An athlete will not be “damaging” his or her knee by playing with some pain.
