Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Case Reports
. 2016 May 10;2016(5):rjw072.
doi: 10.1093/jscr/rjw072.

Bilateral patellar tendon rupture associated with statin use

Marie C Kearns  1 , Vinay K Singh  2
Affiliations
Case Reports

Bilateral patellar tendon rupture associated with statin use

Marie C Kearns et al. J Surg Case Rep. .

Abstract

Patellar tendon rupture is an uncommon clinical presentation, which generally affects the under 40s who are active in sport. Bilateral rupture of both tendons is much rarer. It occurs most frequently in patients with predisposing factors such as corticosteroid use or systemic diseases. The authors present the case of a 56-year-old male on long-term statin therapy who sustained this injury following a fall on ice. He had no known risk factors for tendon rupture. Surgical treatment involved tendon repair using Krakow suture via bony tunnels in the patella. Statins have previously been associated with tendon ruptures at other sites but there have been no published cases of bilateral patellar tendon rupture linked to statin use. We review the literature regarding the association between statins and tendon rupture.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1:
Figure 1:
Left knee showing obvious step and high-riding patella.
Figure 2:
Figure 2:
Lateral X-ray left knee showing high-riding patella.
Figure 3:
Figure 3:
Operative findings showing complete tendon rupture at the inferior patella pol.
Figure 4:
Figure 4:
Krakow suture repair to patellar tendon.
Figure 5:
Figure 5:
Post-operative lateral left knee X-ray showing restored patellar height.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Sibley T, Algren DA, Ellison S.. Bilateral patellar tendon ruptures without predisposing systemic disease or steroid use: a case report and review of the literature. Am J Emerg Med 2012;30:261. - PubMed
    1. Beri A, Dwamena FC, Dwamena BA.. Association between statin therapy and tendon rupture: a case-control study. J Cardiovasc Pharmacol 2009;53:401–4. - PubMed
    1. Marie I, Delafenêtre H, Massy N, Thuillez C, Noblet C.. Network of the French Pharmacovigilance Centers. Tendinous disorders attributed to statins: a study on ninety-six spontaneous reports in the period 1990–2005 and review of the literature. Arthritis Rheum 2008;59:367–72. - PubMed
    1. De Oliveira LP, Vieira CP, Guerra FD, Almeida MS, Pimentel ER.. Structural and biomechanical changes in the Achilles tendon after chronic treatment with statins. Food Chem Toxicol 2015;77:50–7. - PubMed
    1. De Oliveira LP, Vieira CP, Da Ré Guerra F, de Almeida Mdos S, Pimentel ER.. Statins induce biochemical changes in the Achilles tendon after chronic treatment. Toxicology 2013;311:162–8. - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources