[Dupuytren's palmar fibromatosis--a result of vascular hyperproliferation? Ultrastructural studies (author's transl)].

Dupuytren's contracture is represented by a proliferation of fibroblasts. In the study presented here 5 cases of Dupuytren's contracture were examined with the aim to conclude from cytological details of the cells to the possibilities of morphogenesis. The cytological pictures varied relative to the organelle composition. Three types of fibroblasts could be found constituting the great majority of cells in Dupuytren's disease: 1. classical fibroblasts, 2. fibroblasts with myoide differentiations and 3. fibroblasts with histiocyte-like features. The second principal finding were the capillaries with increased amount of pericytes and pericyte-like cells somewhat distant from the vessels. The latter observation led to the assumption that pericytes in this lesion are able to migrate from the vascular wall into the surrounding tissue.