Proximal avulsion of the rectus femoris muscle

Abstract

Injuries of the thigh muscles are among the most frequent sports injuries. For example, in soccer they represent nearly 30% of all injuries. The rectus femoris muscle is particularly exposed to injury due to its anatomical features. While distal ruptures involve the quadriceps tendon and are among the more frequent injuries not only in sports, proximal ruptures represent a rarity. Because of the mostly indifferent clinical signs, the diagnosis is often delayed. In the literature various versions of classifications on the grading of muscle injuries have been described. With respect to the rectus femoris muscle, there is no classification system from which a treatment decision or an algorithm can be derived. The problem is not only the unclear classification of the injury but also the variability of treatment options resulting from this. A selective search of the literature was carried out to construct a review article. No standardized follow-up treatment after surgical interventions or an established procedure for conservative treatment is currently available. The comparison of the individual studies is made difficult due to the low case numbers and nonuniform classification systems. A valid treatment algorithm can only be derived with difficulty based on the currently available data.