Fibrous tether of the distal femur produced unilateral genu valgus with subsequent patellar dislocation: case report and review of the literature

Abstract

Fibrous tether at the distal femur is a rare condition that causes angular deformity of the lower extremity; only 18 cases have been reported previously. We report the case of a 2-year-old boy presenting with unilateral genu valgus. The patient had a subsequent lateral patellar dislocation, 1 year after surgical correction. A second surgery was performed to correct this patellar dislocation. Intraoperative finding indicated contracted lateral patellar retinaculum. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of such a finding. The natural history is still not understood. At the 6-month-follow-up visit, the patient still has good results without recurrent patellar dislocation or angular deformity. We also review the literature in terms of proper treatment and results of treatment.

Excision of fibrous band and application of tension band plating in focal fibrocartilaginous dysplasia: A case report and literature review

“…To date, there have been 23 cases of distal femoral angular deformity caused by FFCD with various treatment methods and outcomes in the literature ( 12 – 18 ) ( Table 1 ). Thabet et al have reported spontaneous resolution of distal femoral angular deformity in an 18-month-old girl over 7 years of follow-up ( 5 ).…”