Multipartite hallux sesamoid

Last revised by Pir Abdul Ahad Aziz Qureshi ◉ on 6 Jun 2022

Citation, DOI, disclosures and article data

Citation:

Knipe H, Qureshi P, Niknejad M, et al. Multipartite hallux sesamoid. Reference article, Radiopaedia.org (Accessed on 03 Oct 2023) https://doi.org/10.53347/rID-24082

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.53347/rID-24082

Permalink:

https://radiopaedia.org/articles/24082

rID:

24082

Article created:

27 Jul 2013, Henry Knipe ◉ ◈

Disclosures:

At the time the article was created Henry Knipe had no recorded disclosures.

View Henry Knipe's current disclosures

Last revised:

6 Jun 2022, Pir Abdul Ahad Aziz Qureshi ◉

Disclosures:

At the time the article was last revised Pir Abdul Ahad Aziz Qureshi had no recorded disclosures.

View Pir Abdul Ahad Aziz Qureshi's current disclosures

Revisions:

19 times, by 7 contributors - see full revision history and disclosures

Systems:

Musculoskeletal

Sections:

Anatomy

Tags:

refs, foot, bone, variant

Synonyms:

Bipartite hallux sesamoid
Tripartite hallux sesamoid
Multipartite hallux sesamoid bones
First metatarsal multipartite sesamoid
Bipartite hallux sesamoids
Tripartite hallux sesamoids

Multipartite hallux sesamoids are a commonly seen normal variant, present in up to 33% of hallux sesamoids. They are more commonly bipartite than tripartite.

The medial (tibial) sesamoid is more likely to be multipartite than the lateral (fibular) sesamoid because it more commonly has more than one ossification center. Bipartite hallux sesamoids are bilateral in ~70% (range 50-85%) of cases.

Differential diagnosis

The principal differential diagnosis is a hallux sesamoid fracture. It can be difficult to differentiate because bipartite hallux sesamoids are more likely to fracture than complete hallux sesamoids. Features that support a bipartite over a fractured sesamoid include: