We report high complication rates and considerable failure rates for the use of intercalary allografts; complications primarily occurred in the first years after surgery, but some occurred much later after surgery. To reduce the number of failures, we recommend reconsidering the use of allografts for reconstructions of defects that are ≥15 cm, especially in older patients, and applying bridging osteosynthesis with use of plate fixation.

Background. Enchondromatosis is characterized by the presence of multiple benign cartilage lesions in bone.

Background and ObjectivesBoth enchondroma and atypical cartilaginous tumors (ACT) are not considered malignant, so inactive and asymptomatic tumors might not need surgery. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study that has been done to evaluate the natural course of conservative‐treated enchondroma and ACT in the long bones.MethodsFor this retrospective study, we analyzed the results of patients in whom we refrained from surgery and only regularly performed radiological follow‐up of the tumor. Minimal follow‐up after initial diagnosis was 24 months.ResultsForty‐nine patients were included in this study. Eight out of forty‐nine cases received surgical treatment during follow‐up of the tumor. The reasons for this surgery were radiologic growth of the tumor in two cases, pain in one case, patient request in three cases, another indication for surgery in the same limb in two cases.ConclusionIn this small series of conservatively treated enchondroma and ACT, only 6% of the patients had a medical indication for surgery. This study shows that indication for surgery should be discussed more thoroughly. Based on our results, we would recommend annual radiologic follow‐up for asymptomatic enchondroma or ACT in the long bones, irrespective of tumor size. J. Surg. Oncol. 2016;114:987–991. © 2016 The Authors. Journal of Bone and Mineral Research Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The use of cryosurgery as adjuvant therapy results in a lower local recurrence rate when compared to other publications for the treatment of ABC and excellent functional results.