Osteochondritis Dissecans of Knee Prospective Cohort

ROCK Comprehensive Prospective Cohort for Osteochondritis Dissecans of the Knee

The Cohort is a multi-site prospective data collection study that will enroll any patient with diagnosis of knee OCD (confirmed by a standard of care x-ray or MRI). Patients will be followed for up to the next 50 years of their lives to study courses of care, disease progression, treatment/surgical options/results, and specific sports-related outcomes in athletic patients. Subjects will complete quality of life surveys as part of the Cohort. Course of care will not be affected.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Osteochondritis Dissecans
• Intervention / Treatment: Other: Other: observational only- no intervention

Detailed Description

Patients will be recruited and consented at the visit in which their eligibility is determined. Once a patient is eligible and provides informed consent, he or she will be in the study for up to 50 years, or until his or her OCD lesion is healed successfully.

At the initial visit, a subject will complete a basic medical history form, and three questionnaires: the IKDC Subjective questionnaire (ages over 18) or the PEDI-IKDC Subjective questionnaire (ages under 18); the KOOS questionnaire; and the Marx Activity Scale (adult) or Pedi-FABS Scale (pediatric). Patients will then continue with their normal course of care as determined by their surgeon and care team.

Mandatory surveys (same as above) will be collected from patients at 2 years, 5 years, 10 years, and 25 years. Patients who cannot return to clinic will have the option to complete the assessments and return in pre-stamped and addressed return envelopes provided by the clinical site the subject is a patient at. Any other follow-up visits between these time intervals will also be options for patients to complete these assessments, however patients will not complete them any closer than intervals 12 weeks apart in order to prevent redundancy.

Additionally, at the initial visit, the surgeon will complete a routine patient history and physical exam, which will be collected. Any surgical procedures or physical therapy a patient undergoes for treatment of his or her OCD lesion will also be documented and collected. At follow-up visits, surgeons will complete their own physical exam follow-up assessment forms, which will be collected.

• Study Type: Observational
• Enrollment (Estimated): 3000

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Mounika Ponakala, MS; Phone Number: 6093343767; Email: mounika.ponakala@pennmedicine.upenn.edu

Study Locations

• United States
  • Pennsylvania
    • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, 19104
      • Recruiting
      • University of Pennsylvania
      • Contact: Mounika Ponakala, BS; Email: Mounika.Ponakala@Pennmedicine.upenn.edu
      • Principal Investigator: James L Carey, MD

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Child; Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Patients of all ages with osteochondritis dissecans (OCD) or focal articular cartilage defects confirmed via MRI or x-ray.

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Diagnosis of osteochondritis dissecans or focal articular cartilage defects as confirmed by x-ray or MRI

Exclusion Criteria:

• Non-confirmed diagnosis (i.e. patient does not yet have imaging confirmation)

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Number of groups / cohorts

1

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort	Intervention / Treatment
Patients with OCD; Patients with diagnosis of OCD as confirmed by x-ray or MRI. Surveys collected from patients at 2 years, 5 years, 10 years, and 25 years.	Other: Other: observational only- no intervention; Other: observational only- no intervention

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
IKDC questionnaire	The primary outcome endpoint for this study is the patient's score on the IKDC Subjective questionnaire, or PEDI-IKDC Subjective questionnaire for patients under 18 years of age.	baseline up to 50 years
PEDI-IKDC questionnaire	The primary outcome endpoint for this study is the patient's score on the IKDC Subjective questionnaire, or PEDI-IKDC Subjective questionnaire for patients under 18 years of age.	baseline up to 50 years

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
KOOS Knee score	The Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score (KOOS) evaluates short-term and long-term symptoms and function in subjects with knee injury and osteoarthritis.	baseline up to 50 years
Marx Activity Score questionnaire	Measure of physical activity at healthiest and most active state from time of taking to year prior.	baseline up to 50 years
Pedi-FABS Score	An eight-item scale that measures level of physical activity and fitness.	baseline up to 50 years
Radiographic Healing	Visualization of bone healing through x-ray images.	baseline up to 50 years

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Pennsylvania
• Collaborators: The Hospital for Sick Children; Mayo Clinic; National University Hospital, Singapore; Children's Hospital of Philadelphia; Washington University School of Medicine; Göteborg University; Children's Hospital Colorado; Boston Children's Hospital; Stanford University; Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati; Kaiser Permanente; Hospital for Special Surgery, New York; Children's Mercy Hospital Kansas City; Children's Hospital and Health System Foundation, Wisconsin; Children's Healthcare of Atlanta; Rady Children's Hospital, San Diego; Connecticut Children's Medical Center; Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children; Altona Children's Hospital; Tennessee Orthopedic Alliance; Children's Health Andrews Institute for Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine; The Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children; University of Minnesota/TRIA Orthopaedic Center
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: James L Carey, MD, University of Pennsylvania

Publications and helpful links

General Publications

• ROCK Group; Nissen CW, Albright JC, Anderson CN, Busch MT, Carey JL, Carlson C, Carsen S, Chambers HG, Crepeau A, Edmonds EW, Ellermann JM, Ellis HB Jr, Erickson JB, Fabricant PD, Godin J, Ganley TJ, Green DW, Grimm NL, Heyworth BE, Hui Hoi Po J, Kocher MS, Koehler R, Krych AJ, Latz KH, Loveland DM, Lyon RM, Meenen NM, Milewski MD, Myer GD, Nelson BJ, Nepple JJ, Nguyen JC, Pace JL, Paterno MV, Pennock AT, Perkins CA, Polousky JD, Riley P, Saluan P, Shea KG, Tompkins MA, Wall EJ, Weiss JM, Willimon SC, Wilson PL, Wright RW, Kostyun RO. The Efficacy of Bracing in Nonoperative Care of Medial Femoral Condyle Osteochondritis Dissecans: A Study From the Research in Osteochondritis Dissecans of the Knee (ROCK) Study Group. Am J Sports Med. 2026 May;54(6):1415-1422. doi: 10.1177/03635465261429407. Epub 2026 Apr 14.

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): May 1, 2014
• Primary Completion (Estimated): May 1, 2074
• Study Completion (Estimated): December 1, 2074

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: May 10, 2016
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 12, 2016
• First Posted (Estimated): May 13, 2016

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): May 27, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: May 26, 2026
• Last Verified: May 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Bone Diseases; Musculoskeletal Diseases; Osteochondritis; Osteochondritis Dissecans
• Other Study ID Numbers: 820147

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: UNDECIDED