Presentation
The patient fell on the handlebar of his bike in a crash.
Patient Data
Age: 65 years
Gender: Male
Case Discussion
Sternal fractures occur in ~5% of blunt chest trauma. It presents as acute, severe sternal pain that is worse with respiration with localized tenderness.
CT is the modality of choice; sagittal reformats are the most sensitive. It can assess for anterior cortical breach and posterior cortical breach, with the latter being associated with more severe neurovascular injuries.