Tibial Plateau Fractures: Not an Elegy to Football Practice

TL;DR

A 37-year-old athlete recovered and resumed playing futsal after a rare tibial plateau fracture, which is uncommon in sports.

Contribution

Reports a rare case of a tibial plateau fracture in a futsal athlete with successful recovery.

Findings

Tibial plateau fractures are rare in sports and usually result from high-impact trauma.

The patient resumed playing sports nine months post-injury, a rare outcome for such complex fractures.

Abstract

Tibial plate fractures are rare in sports and often associated with high-impact trauma. The most usual classification used in tibial plate fractures is the Schatzker Classification, graded from I to VI, according to the level of comminution of the lesion. There is a scarcity of reports of athletes who have suffered this kind of fracture while playing football or futsal. We present a report of a 37-year-old athlete who suffered a Schatzker V fracture while playing futsal. The athlete had surgical intervention by means of open reduction internal fixation with a plate and screws and was enrolled in a rehabilitation program focusing on quadriceps strengthening and gait training. Nine months after the fracture, our patient resumed playing, an outcome that is quite rare in these complex lesions.

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