Figure 1.

Hypothetical model of tibial dyschondroplasia formation. a) Terminal differentiation of chondrocytes involves an ordered progression of cell states through proliferation, hypertrophic differentiation, to cell death. The figure shows examples of dead chondrocytes can be cleared by the blood vessels in the growth plate zone. b) Increased tibia bone weight or joint mechanical force leads to massive chondrocyte death or apoptosis. The figure shows examples of a greater number of dead chondrocytes cannot be cleared timely by less adequate blood vessels in the growth plate area. TDL, tibial dyschondroplasia lesion.