Bilateral Sleeve Fracture of the Patella in a Healthy 11-Year-Old Male: A Case Report

• Published in: Cureus Vol. 15; no. 12; p. e50347
• Main Authors: Usami, Shintaro, Naraoka, Takuya, Sasaki, Shizuka, Oishi, Kazuki, Ishibashi, Yasuyuki
• Format: Report
• Language: English
• Published: 01.12.2023
• ISSN: 2168-8184; 2168-8184
• DOI: 10.7759/cureus.50347

Bilateral sleeve fracture of the patella (SFP) in skeletally immature children is a rare injury. We report the case of a healthy 11-year-old male who suffered bilateral SFP while playing tag. The avulsed fragments of his left patella were highly comminuted. Open reduction and internal fixation (ORIF) were performed using suture anchors, and the knees were immobilized using a cylinder cast for three weeks. At the one-year follow-up assessment, both knees were found to have regained full strength with no extension lag. However, we observed malunion due to lateral shift of the avulsed fragment, cystic lesions, and clicking in the patella, and the patient experienced residual pain in the left knee. Based on this, we conclude that the sleeve fracture of the patella with comminuted cartilaginous fragments was difficult to treat and might have led to poor clinical results if anatomical reduction and fixation had not been performed.