Acetabular avulsion fracture in a 13-year-old patient after a minor trauma

The pelvis fracture in children is extremely rare, and only in about 10% of these cases the acetabulum is involved. According to the literature, such acetabulum fractures have been exclusively reported after a major trauma. We report the case of a 13-year-old previously healthy patient, who sustained a posterior wall fracture of the right acetabulum after a minor trauma while playing football. The patient was managed with an open reduction and internal fixation of the fracture through 3 single lag screws. In the 2-year follow-up, the patient did not have any functional impairment and has returned to all usual activities. This case shows that a seemingly inadequate trauma can result in an acetabular fracture in children. Therefore, a correct workup leading to the diagnosis should be carried out. The treatment of those fractures follows the known principles of the traumatology in adults. Because the injury mechanism and the age of our patient are typical for avulsion fractures of the pelvis, a similar mechanism is discussed for this reported posterior wall fracture of the acetabulum.