Os vesalianum pedis is a rare accessory foot ossicle. It is usually asymptomatic, however, it can be an infrequent cause of lateral foot pain. We present the case of a 19-year-old healthy male with lateral foot pain after an inversion-type injury. Initial X-rays were mistaken for fracture of the fifth metatarsal, however, a high index of suspicion for the presence of the os vesalianum led us to perform imaging of the contralateral foot; a mirror image with contralateral os vesalianum was revealed. The patient was treated conservatively and had an excellent outcome. In the context of trauma, os vesalianum must be differentiated from other causes of lateral foot pain, such as Iselin’s disease, avulsion fracture of the fifth metatarsal, Jones fracture, and others. Os vesalianum pedis is characterized as a rounded ossicle, with smooth edges, surrounded by cortical bone. Prompt diagnosis is essential as it changes the management.

Extra lateral interbody fusion (XLIF) has been established in recent years as an effective approach to address degenerative lumbar disc disease (DLDD). Although neurological and vascular complications during XLIF have been reported, to our knowledge, a combination of simultaneous vascular and neurovascular complication during XLIF has not been reported to date. A 72-year-old female patient was admitted to our orthopaedic department because of back pain associated with severe neuropathic radicular pain to her both lower extremities, incomplete paraplegia and low back fistula with serous secretion for several weeks. She had been wheelchair bound since nine years before her admission in our department when she had her initial XLIF operation in another institution. Intraoperatively, an aorta lesion occurred, which was emergently addressed, along with lumbar plexus injury. Since then, she had an extensive history of subsequent operations that ended with a T10-S1 posterior lumbar fusion, with no improvement of her neurological condition, complicated by hardware-induced infection. She underwent her last operation in our department; removal of the posterior lumbar construct and extensive debridement of the posterior lumbar spine. We present this rare case and we perform an extensive literature review. Although XLIF has been established in recent years, the report of major vascular injuries, although rare, has questioned its safety profile. Spine surgeons should be aware of catastrophic major neurovascular complications associated with this procedure and be prepared to address them.

Sigmoid sinus thrombosis is a relatively rare, but severe complication of acute otitis media and mastoiditis among other conditions. We report a case of a 3-year-old boy with a history of recurrent acute otitis media which was initially partially treated with antibiotics for 1 month before his admission to our department for high fever and headache. Although initially, no signs of central nervous system (CNS) involvement were present, clinical suspicion for CNS pathology led our whole work-up to conclude the diagnosis of sigmoid sinus thrombosis. The patient was subsequently treated with intravenous antibiotics, anticoagulation therapy and also underwent myringotomy, bilateral tympanostomy tube placement, and mastoidectomy. Cerebral sinus thrombosis is a life-threatening condition that usually complicates the neglected acute otitis media or mastoiditis. Optimal treatment includes antibiotic therapy, hydration, and pain management, with the debatable role of anticoagulation therapy and mastoidectomy.

A combination of tibial tuberosity (TT) fracture (TTF) along with patellar tendon (PT) rupture (PTR) is rare. We report a 15-year-old male who presented to our ED with acute knee pain and an inability to actively extend the knee after jumping during a basketball game. Diagnosis of simultaneous PTR is crucial as it changes clinical management. It is, therefore, important to maintain a high index of suspicion for the combination of TTF and PT injury.

Fractures of the inferior angle of the scapula represent a rare entity, with few cases published in the literature to date. Their optimal management is still unclear. A systematic literature search was conducted in PubMed and Google Scholar of reports published between 1977 and 2022. Inclusion criteria were cases presenting inferior scapula angle fractures (ISAF) and reporting management and outcomes. Extracted data included patient demographics (age, sex), mechanism of injury, associated injuries, management, procedures performed, and outcomes. Seventeen studies (22 cases; 19 males and three females) were included. The mean age was 33 years (15 adult and seven pediatric cases). High energy injuries were the most common mechanism of injury (77%). Displacement of the fragment was reported in 64%. The most common initial treatment was conservative (77%); of these cases, more than half failed initial treatment (53%). Of the displaced ISAF cases, 89% failed conservative treatment, contrary to 83% of the nondisplaced cases that were successfully treated conservatively. Surgery yielded 100% success both as initial treatment and after failed conservative management. Displaced fractures should be approached surgically, while conservative management should be reserved for nondisplaced fractures.