Finnish Perthes Association

Updated 6.10.2006

The Finnish Perthes Association is a voluntary, non-profit group of patients and families affected by so-called Perthes syndrome, Morbus Legg Calvé Perthes dex. (ICD-10 M91.1).

Legg-Calvé-Perthes syndrome is a degenerative disease of the hip joint, where a loss of bone mass leads to some degree of collapse of the hip joint, that is, to deformity of the ball of the femur and the surface of the hip socket. The disease is typically found in young children, though in extremely rare cases it also affects adults. (It is found also in dogs, but we do not deal with that.) It is the idiopathic avascular osteonecrosis of the capital femoral epiphysis of the femoral head. It is caused by an interruption to the blood supply of the head of the femur close to the hip joint.

It is also known as Perthes disease, ischemic necrosis of the hip, coxa plana, osteochondritis and avascular necrosis of the femoral head, or Legg-Perthes Disease or Legg-Calve-Perthes Disease (LCPD).

The objective of Finnish Perthes Association is to support in many ways all families and people who have confronted this rare disease, often by mutual fellowship support by other people having experienced the same. The information activities have so far included several articles in various magazines, leaflets distributed in hospitals and professional fairs, an appearance in a TV program focused on Perthes, and support to a thesis document about physiotherapy of Perthes disease. We strive to give new patients right diagnosis as early as possible, competent care and cure and correct information about what to expect. The association organizes annual meetings, often containing lectures by expert doctors, and sometimes also other happenings.

The association has little more than 130 members, many of them families having a child patient, but also many adults and juveniles who have experienced Perthes as a child. The age range is from 5 to 56. It is a member organization in Finnish Association of People with Mobility Disabilities, Invalidiliitto, which has more than 30 000 members.

The activities of Perthes Association are based on voluntary work. It does not receive any public funding - operation is based on membership fees and admission fees in conventions. However, the association accepts gratefully donations and charity revenues.

Finnish Perthes Association also seeks contacts to similar groups or interested people in other countries. We would like to share experiences, compare treatment practices, maybe attend your events and welcome you to ours. Please feel free to write a note on our message board or send a message to