Longitudinal tear of the peroneus brevis tendon - a very rare complication after an ankle sprain

Abstract

Longitudinal peroneus brevis tendon tears are very uncommon. Bassett and Speer hypothesized that the cause of a longitudinal peroneus brevis tear is likely an extrinsic phenomenon, with the tendon injured by a portion of the distal fibula after inversion trauma of the ankle. The typical patient describes the pain localized posterior to the lateral malleolus and palpable swelling behind the lateral malleolus can raise the suspicion of a tear. There is no specific diagnostic and treatment algorithm. Operative treatments include repair of the tendon, resection of the tear, debridement of the tendon, or tenodesis of the peroneus brevis to the peroneus longus2. This manuscript presents two surgically documented longitudinal peroneus brevis tendon tears.