The Clay Shoveler's Fracture: A Case Report and Review of the Literature.

BACKGROUND: A clay-shoveler's fracture is a very rarely occurring stress-type avulsion fracture of the lower cervical or upper thoracic spinous processes owing its name to the clay shovelers of past times. Currently, this type of injury is mainly encountered in individuals practicing sports involving rotational movements of the upper spine. CASE REPORT: We present a case of a man sustaining a clay-shoveler's injury during his work in a horse-riding school. Treatment consisted of a period of rest and analgesics, followed by mobilization as was tolerated. We give a brief historical account of clay shoveler's fractures. WHY SHOULD AN EMERGENCY PHYSICIAN BE AWARE OF THIS?: Clay-shoveler's fractures are frequently overlooked due to their rareness; however, they have specific clinical features that should alert an attending physician to set the correct diagnosis. This report describes a typical case of a clay-shoveler's fracture, relates to the historical entity of clay-shoveler's fractures, and summarizes existing literature on this topic.

Dislocation of the proximal tibiofibular joint, do not miss it.

We present a case of a 45-year-old woman with a right proximal tibiofibular dislocation she sustained after a fall during roller skating. Anteroposterior and lateral radiographs confirmed the diagnosis; there were no other injuries. The dislocation was reduced by direct manipulation after intra-articular infiltration, in our emergency department. The patient was treated with a long, non-weight bearing leg cast for 1 week. After 4 weeks, she had no pain and a full range of motion of the knee.

Relevance of the JAK2V617F mutation in patients with deep vein thrombosis of the leg.

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) can be the first presenting symptom in myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN). Studies have demonstrated a high prevalence of the JAK2V617F mutation in patients with splanchnic vein thrombosis. Fewer studies have been done in patients with thrombosis outside the splanchnic area, showing a lower prevalence although the clinical relevance of the mutation in these patients, e.g., progression to overt MPN, remains unknown. The objective of this study was to determine the effect size of JAK2V617F in prospectively collected DNA samples of patients objectively diagnosed with deep vein thrombosis (DVT) of the leg and controls without DVT, with follow-up on JAK2V617F-positive patients to assess clinical relevance. Presence of JAK2V617F was determined in DNA samples from 187 patients with DVT and 201 controls, using quantitative RT-PCR. Hematological parameters were also analyzed. All initially JAK2V617F-positive patients were reassessed. Of 187 patients with DVT, 178 were analyzed for JAK2V617F, and in four (2.3%; 95% CI 0.1-4.4), JAK2V617F was present. Of 201 controls, 198 were analyzed; one was JAK2V617F positive (0.5%; 95% CI -0.5-1.5, OR 4.5; 95% CI 0.5-40.9). None had MPN features, nor upon reassessment after a median follow-up of 68.5 months. Four JAK2V617F-positive patients with DVT and one control without DVT did not develop overt MPN after a median follow-up of nearly 6 years. Thus, in patients with non-splanchnic venous thrombosis, JAK2V617F appears not to be clinically relevant.