Bilateral simultaneous tibial tubercle avulsion fractures in an adolescent baseball player: Case report and literature review

INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE: Fractures in the proximal tibial tuberosity are rare injuries. Even more uncommon are bilateral simultaneous fractures. Due to the few cases reported in the literature, we aimed to present a case which may contribute to the diagnosis and treatment of bilateral simultaneous tibial tubercle fractures. CASE PRESENTATION: A 13-year-old Hispanic male presented to the emergency department after experiencing sudden knee buckling while running after standing up from the catcher's position (squatted) during a baseball game, causing him to collapse to the ground. Plain radiographs revealed displaced tibial tubercle avulsion fractures in both knees. He underwent bilateral open reduction and internal fixation. Fracture healing was completed without complications. DISCUSSION: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first documented case of a Hispanic pediatric baseball player, adding to the small number of reported cases of bilateral tibial tubercle fractures. The presented case is rare in terms of the mechanism of injury, which has been scantly reported in the literature. CONCLUSION: Due to the rarity of atraumatic bilateral tibial tubercle fractures we believe this documentation may be of clinical relevance.