Case Report : Multiple Stress Fractures (hamate, triquetrum, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Metacarpal bones) in an Amateur Tennis Player



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Submitted 2020-05-09
Published 2020-05-22
10.24018/ejmed.2020.2.3.274

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Background: upper extremity stress fractures are infrequent events in tennis sport. According to our literature, we have only identified 6 case reports of upper limb stress fractures among amateur or professional tennis players. To the best of our knowledge, this is the only case report where stress fractures occur in: hamate, triquetrum, 2nd, 4th, and 5th metacarpal bones simultaneously.

Case presentation: 27 years old lady, presented with acute burning pain at the base of her right thumb. There was not a history of direct trauma. Her symptoms start to appear after 3 days of playing tennis. Physical examination was negative for tenderness, swelling and erythema. The rheumatoid factor was elevated (20.3 iu/ml). the diagnosis of multiple stress fractures was made by the suggestive MRI findings.

Conclusion: Although stress fractures of the upper limbs are not common, it is of a great value to keep the clinical suspicion high towards it. Especially in amateur or professional athletes with persistent or worsening symptoms. The best modality to confirm such fractures is MRI.

Keywords: Stress fractures, upper limb, upper extremity, tennis.

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