Acute rupture of the tibialis posterior tendon without fracture: a case report

Posterior tibialis tendon rupture concomitant with a closed medial malleolar fracture: A case report and literature review

Traumatic rupture of the posterior tibialis tendon is an extremely infrequent condition, which mostly occurred due to a traumatic mechanism of pronation and external rotation, less commonly in direct trauma on the medial side of the ankle. This lesion is overlooked preoperatively most of the time because of the limitation of physical examination owing to acute pain and swelling secondary to a medial malleolar fracture. Early diagnosis and treatment of this injury are very important to prevent the complications like acquired flatfoot deformity. Few cases have been described in the literature for the posterior tibialis tendon rupture associated with a closed ankle fracture. Here we report an acute rupture of the posterior tibialis tendon associated with a closed medial malleolar fracture after a high-energy trauma in a healthy 33-year-old man. We fixed the medial malleolar fracture with two screws and repaired the tendon with a direct end-to-end suture. We hope that our study can be helpful for other colleagues to consider this lesion in similar circumstances.

Surgical Considerations: Repair of Long Segment Defect Posterior Tibial Tendon Using Fresh Frozen Tibial Tendon Allograft

Tibialis posterior (TP) tendon ruptures are common after ankle injuries, degenerative processes, or biomechanical instability. The TP tendon decelerates the subtalar joint pronation and internal rotation of the leg during the contact phase. It also plantarflexes and inverts the foot on the leg during the static phase of gait. When this function is lost, the medial longitudinal arch collapses, increasing the length of time of rearfoot pronation, eventually rupturing the TP tendon. Conservative treatment includes immobilization, strapping, antiinflammatories, custom-fabricated orthotics, and physical therapy. If the TP tendon rupture is severe, conservative treatment will provide little relief and surgery is indicated. This case study presents 53-year-old female who presented with left TP tendon rupture with a defect of 6 cm after sustaining an ankle injury that was surgically repaired using a TP tendon fresh frozen allograft and flexor digitorum longus tenodesis. After a 16-month follow-up, the patient was healed without complications and returned to preinjury activity. We believe that surgically repairing a TP tendon rupture with a TP tendon allograft and flexor digitorum longus tenodesis can be 1 of the treatment options for patients with extensive disruption of the TP tendon.

Biologically Enhanced Hamstring Tendon Transfer for Treatment of Acute Rupture of Posterior Tibialis Tendon in an Athlete: Case Report

We report the case of a 32-year-old basketball player who presented with an acute flatfoot deformity after performing a unipodal power jump. Rupture of the posterior tibial tendon within the foot was diagnosed and then treated by hamstring tendon transfer combined with application of autologous biologic preparations. The functional outcome at 18 months was good. To our knowledge, this is the first reported case of posterior tibial tendon rupture treated by hamstring tendon transfer.

Posterior tibialis tendon rupture associated with closed medial malleolus fracture and avulsion of anterior talofibular ligament: A case report and review of the literature

Introduction:

Traumatic rupture of posterior tibialis tendon in association with medial malleolus fracture is extremely rare.

Case Presentation:

We demonstrate our experience in the management of a complete posterior tibialis tendon (PTT) rupture and anterior talofibular ligament avulsion fracture from the talus in association with medial malleolus fracture in a 30-year-old male motorcyclist without any open wounds.

Discussion:

We believe this to be the first reported injury of this type in the literature. Closed ankle fractures may obscure surrounding tendon rupture and the clinician may be tempted to focus on the osseous injuries rather than the significance of associated soft tissue injures.

Conclusion:

This particular case demonstrates the importance of assessing for PTT injury in situations where high velocity impact to the ankle results in malleolar fracture.

Presentation, Diagnosis, and Nonsurgical Treatment Options of the Anterior Tibial Tendon, Posterior Tibial Tendon, Peroneals, and Achilles

Disorders of the anterior tibial tendon (ATT) are rare, and relatively few series have been described in the literature. Ruptures of the ATT are more common than tendinopathies of the ATT. For those patients with a tendinopathy, initial treatment may include activity and shoe-wear modifications.

Acute Tibialis Posterior Tendon Rupture With Pronation-Type Ankle Fractures

Tibialis posterior tendon rupture in the setting of pronation-type ankle fractures can lead to long-term debility as a result of chronic tendon dysfunction. This rare injury pattern presents a diagnostic challenge because thorough preoperative examination of the function of the tendon is limited by pain, swelling, and inherent instability of the fracture. As such, a high index of suspicion is necessary in ankle fractures with radiographs showing a medial malleolus fracture with an associated suprasyndesmotic fibula fracture. This report describes 3 cases of tibialis posterior tendon rupture associated with pronation-type ankle fractures treated acutely with open reduction and internal fixation and primary tendon repair. Additionally, common features of this injury pattern are discussed based on the current literature. In accordance with this report, the typical mechanism of injury is high energy and includes forced pronation, external rotation, and dorsiflexion of the ankle, which places maximal stress on the tibialis posterior tendon. Rupture most commonly occurs in a relatively hypovascular area of the tendon located at the posteromedial extent of the medial malleolus fracture. In the operative treatment of pronation-type ankle fractures, direct inspection of the tibialis posterior tendon allows for timely diagnosis and treatment of associated ruptures. [Orthopedics.2016; 39(5):e970-e975.].

Closed Medial Malleolar Multifragment Fracture With a Posterior Tibialis Tendon Rupture: A Case Report and Review of the Literature

Ankle fractures represent an exciting field of traumatology because of the wide variety of clinical presentations, injury mechanisms, and treatment options. Rupture of the posterior tibialis tendon (PTT) with ankle fracture can occur during trauma that involves pronation and external rotation of the foot or, less commonly, secondary to direct trauma to the ankle. This tendon injury is uncommon and probably misdiagnosed in many cases, because of the difficult clinical examination secondary to the pain and swelling. The identification and early treatment of PTT tears is essential for good functional outcomes to prevent the main mid- to long-term complication of disabling acquired flatfoot due to tendon failure. In the present report, we provide a review of the published data regarding ankle fractures associated with PTT rupture and describe our experience with a case of a multifragment medial malleolus fracture and complete rupture of the PTT diagnosed intraoperatively and surgically treated in a 34-year-old male, with 2.5 years of follow-up.