Frequency of Adjunctive MRI Findings on First-Time Patellar Dislocations in Pediatric Patients: A Systematic Review
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Patellar dislocation in pediatric athletes often involve additional injuries not identified on plain films. PURPOSE: To identify the rate of medial patellofemoral ligament (MPFL) injury and adjunctive injury findings identified by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in first-time patellar dislocations in the pediatric population. STUDY DESIGN: Systematic review; Level of evidence, 4. METHODS: This review was registered with the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) (CRD: 42024559285). PubMed, EMBASE, and SPORTDiscus were searched for studies on MRI findings after first-time pediatric patellar dislocations. Abstracts and articles were screened using predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. The inclusion criteria were (1) first-time patellar dislocation, (2) explicit documentation of MRI findings, (3) patients
Fields of Study & Subjects
Lower Extremity Biomechanics and Pathologies
Sports injuries and prevention
Knee injuries and reconstruction techniques
Publication details
- Journal / source
- The American Journal of Sports Medicine
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Volume
- 54
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 981–989
- Publication date
- 9 January 2026
- Language
- EN