In this volume a distinguished group of internationallyrenowned clinicians and basic researchers discuss thepresent state of knowledge of the etiologyand pathogenesisof Dupuytren's contracture, a disease responsible for aconsiderable portion of disabilities within the workingpopulation allover the world. Although the riddle of howthe contracture of the palmar fascia develops is stillunsolved, the data on the pathobiochemistry and clinic ofDupuytren's Disease achieved in recent years has led to abetter understanding of the biochemical and morphologicalprocesses underlying the deformation and malfunction of theafflicted tissues. Research in Dupuytren's Disease nowenters the era of molecular medicine, which opens up newexperimental means of studying the pathological changeswhich occur during the formation of the contracture on amolecular level. In particular, data are presented as to therole of specific biological macromolecules influencing thephenotype expression of the palmar fascia cells which areinvolved in autoimmune reactions and present both at thecell surface as well as in the extracellular matrix toregulate cell-to-cell and cell-to-matrix interactions. Invitro cell culture models to investigate fibro-cyticmodulations are available and havebeen applied to study theeffects of specific biological molecules on isolated cellsfrom healthy palmar fascia and Dupuytren's contracture.Complementary evaluations of morphological, epidemiological,and clinical data contribute essentially to the presentunderstanding of the etiology and pathogenesis ofDupuytren's Disease. This comprehensive and informativesummary of the state of the art is completed by numerousreferences affixed to the individual contributions.
