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CC BY 4.0 · Rev Bras Ortop (Sao Paulo)
DOI: 10.1055/s-0044-1779307
Relato de Caso

Popliteal Artery Entrapment Syndrome as a Differential Diagnosis for Knee Pain: A Case Report[*]

Article in several languages: português | English
Antuny Rodrigues Rosa 
1   Hospital Nossa Senhora dos Prazeres, Lages, SC, Brasil
,
Hamilton Santos Cé 
2   Hospital Tereza Ramos e Hospital Nossa Senhora dos Prazeres, Lages, SC, Brasil
,
Ana Clara Monteiro Marchini 
3   Universidade do Planalto Catarinense, Lages, SC, Brasil
,
Anna Katarina Menegon Lopetegui 
3   Universidade do Planalto Catarinense, Lages, SC, Brasil
,
Anna Luiza Lunardelli Padilha 
3   Universidade do Planalto Catarinense, Lages, SC, Brasil
,
Gustavo Rosa Bianchini 
3   Universidade do Planalto Catarinense, Lages, SC, Brasil
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Abstract

Popliteal artery entrapment syndrome has congenital and functional causes. It mostly affects young people. There are six types of popliteal artery entrapment syndrome. Here, we report a case of type III popliteal artery entrapment syndrome, with an anatomical variation of the gastrocnemius muscle, with an accessory band laterally attached in the femoral condyle compressing the popliteal artery. The patient had characteristic symptoms, with intermittent claudication, paresthesia, absence of blood flow in the posterior tibial and dorsalis pedis arteries during dorsiflexion and plantar flexion of the right foot, and pain in the posterior knee at the physical examination. Imaging supplemented the diagnosis, and the method of choice was magnetic resonance imaging to identify vascular alterations in structures adjacent to the blood vessels in the popliteal fossa. The treatment was surgical for symptom relief and complication prevention. The condition improved with the resection of the accessory band of the gastrocnemius muscle. It is worth noting that the existing literature on the subject is scarce, but the approach adopted here is consistent with other publications. The present report is critical for understanding the popliteal artery entrapment syndrome as a differential diagnosis for knee pain.

Keywords

knee - pain - popliteal artery entrapment syndrome

Financial Support

The present research received no specific funding from public, commercial, or not-for-profit sector agencies.


* Study developed at the Universidade do Planalto Catarinense, Lages, SC, Brazil.




Publication History

Received: 25 January 2023

Accepted: 29 May 2023

Article published online:
24 April 2024

© 2024. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

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