Augmented primary repair of chronic partial complex triceps brachii tear in a kabaddi player - a case report

Injury to the triceps brachii tendon is relatively rare (<1 % of all tendon ruptures). Partial tears of triceps are seen in indirect injury mechanisms usually involving the superficial part of the muscle with intact deep medial head, which may require operative intervention in high-demand individuals.

A 36-year-old right-handed athlete with chronic complex triceps tear with a history of anabolic steroid use managed operatively with augmented primary repair using fibre-wire with excellent outcome at 2-year follow-up. We describe a novel technique of using a transosseous fibre-wire to offload the repair and augment the repair by anconeus fascia transposition over the repair site.

Even with chronic triceps tear, primary repair with offloading is possible if ends can be approximated without tension and can give excellent outcomes.