2022 Volume 13 Issue 4 Pages 726-730
Introduction: Pelvic ring fractures potentially cause several complications that include neuropathy, severe complication that affects a patient's quality of life. However, despite its seriousness, neurologic symptoms in the patient are often unnoticed due to crucial pathologies existing at the acute stage of the traumatic injury. Here we report on a case of a patient with a pelvic ring fracture associated with delayed S1 radiculopathy, which was successfully treated by a surgical nerve decompression four months after the injury.
Case Report: A 23-years-old woman was emergently seen after a crush injury by building materials during her work. A pelvic ring fracture was diagnosed, and surgical osteosynthesis was performed six days after the injury. On rehabilitation, weight-bearing on her bilateral legs was prohibited, and partial weight-bearing was started four weeks after the surgery. Immediately after the start of weight-bearing, she complained of pain and muscle weakness in her right leg. Right S1 nerve compression was suspected by CT and MRI examinations. We treated her conservatively, but her symptoms were persistent. We conducted surgical decompression on the right S1 nerve four months after the injury, and the patient showed resolution of pain and muscle weakness.
Conclusions: We experienced a case of delayed S1 radiculopathy developed after a pelvic ring fracture. Although the occurrence of neurologic disorder caused by a pelvic ring fracture is rare, clinicians should consider a potential risk of neurologic disorder at the chronic stage of pelvic ring fractures.
