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Is the Segond’s fracture a reliable sign of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear? A case report without associated ACL rupture

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Abstract

Segond’s fracture is an avulsion fracture of the lateral rim of the tibial plateau. It is described as a “capsular sign” of associated anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears. The clinical examination of a traumatically painful knee is often difficult. For this reason the Segond’s fracture is considered a helpful sign for the diagnosis of ACL ruptures. We report an uncommon case of an isolated Segond’s fracture without ACL rupture (or other internal derangement) associated. With this report we have reviewed literature to know the real occurrence of the Segond’s fracture with ACL tears. The question to be answered is if this lesion really is a sign of association of ACL tears. Most of the cases published are isolated and only one paper has analyzed this occurrence precisely. The scientific literature concludes that the Segond’s fracture is a strong indirect sign of ACL’s tear associated in injured knee.

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Conflict of interest statement

No funds were received in support of this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Service de Chirurgie Orthopédique et Traumatologie, Hopital d’instruction des Armees Begin, 69 bis avenue de Paris, 94160, Saint-Mande, France

    D. Ollat, J. P. Marchaland, L. Mathieu, O. Barbier & G. Versier

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  1. D. Ollat
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  2. J. P. Marchaland
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  3. L. Mathieu
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  4. O. Barbier
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  5. G. Versier
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Correspondence to D. Ollat.

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Ollat, D., Marchaland, J.P., Mathieu, L. et al. Is the Segond’s fracture a reliable sign of anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tear? A case report without associated ACL rupture. Eur J Orthop Surg Traumatol 19, 203–206 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00590-008-0395-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00590-008-0395-5

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