• Maximizing Athletic Performance

    Advanced Arthroscopic Surgery

  • Rebuilding Reliable Joints

    Shoulder Replacement & Complex Reconstruction

  • Maximizing Shoulder Range of Motion

    Advanced Cartilage Restoration

  • Helping You Achieve Your Goals

    Patient Centered Care & Excellent Outcomes

  • Play
  • Pause
Home / Research » Costal Cartilage Fractures and Disruptions in a Rugby Football Player

Costal Cartilage Fractures and Disruptions in a Rugby Football Player

Lopez V, Ma R, Li X, Steele J, Allen AA.  Costal cartilage fractures and disruptions in a rugby football player.  Clinical Journal of Sports Medicine. 2013 May;23(3): 232-4.


Abstract
Costal cartilage fracture of the rib cage, or costochondral, is a rare sporting injury. For contact athletes, the instability of the rib cage may lead to potential serious complications, similar to rib fractures or thorax disruption. Most authors recommend initial conservative treatment with surgery reserved for only recalcitrant cases. We report a case of an amateur American male rugby football player who sustained a costal cartilage fracture and disruption involving the anterior left fifth and sixth rib costal cartilages. The case highlights the difficulty in establishing the diagnosis based on clinical examination and standard radiographs alone. Computed tomography was used to assist in diagnosing this destabilizing injury to the rib cage. Costal cartilage fractures and disruptions in athletes are rarely reported in literature and can have serious implications for the athlete's ability to return to play if the rib cage is destabilized.
 
  • american-academy-orthopaedic-surgeons
  • american-orthopaedic-society-for-sports-med
  • Reserchgate
  • orthopaedic-research-society
  • american-arthroscopic-association-north-america
  • american-shoulder-and-elbow-surgeons
  • boston-medical-center
  • boston-university
  • boston-university-school-of-medicine
  • depuy-synthes
  • boston-university-orthopaedic-surgery
  • easter-orthopaedic-association
  • tornier