Complete Closed Brachioradialis Tendon Rupture: A Case Report

Abstract

A complete brachioradialis tendon rupture, as an isolated incident, is extremely rare. Consequently, there is little to no literature on how this can occur and how to treat it. We present the case of a 44-year-old male with a complete, closed brachioradialis tendon rupture following a waterskiing accident. The clinical, imagining and operative findings are outlined alongside management and final outcomes. Our case highlights the effectiveness of a combined surgical and staged physiotherapy approach, for the management of a complete, closed brachioradialis tendon rupture, in an otherwise healthy man.

Rupture of the brachioradialis muscle following blunt trauma. A case report

“…The one-year follow up revealed that this patient did not fully recover and still experienced limitations due to loss of strength of the biceps brachii muscle. The cases presented in previous literature reported not to have any symptoms at 9 months follow up [3] , [4] . Again, this difference might be explained by the localization of the muscle rupture (muscle belly versus tendon) and perhaps also the mechanism of injury (excessive physical loading versus blunt trauma).…”

“…During the reevaluation of the injured the arm in the first weeks following the strangulation, both conservative and surgical treatment of the muscle tear was considered. Previously reported treatments of ruptures after blunt trauma in the brachioradialis either comprised a four weeks splint immobilization for a partial rupture [3] or a surgical repair followed by short immobilization for a complete rupture [4] . However, in both cases the traumatic rupture was located in the muscle tendon, whereas the current patient suffered from a defect in the muscle belly.…”

“…In case of such injuries, the distal part of the musculus biceps brachii is most commonly affected [1] , whereas multiple cases of ruptures in the brachialis muscle are described as well [2] . However, documentation on ruptures of the brachioradialis muscle or tendon is limited to only two case reports [3] , [4] . These previously reported injuries resulted from excessive physical loading and appeared not to be specific to age or certain physical activities.…”