Nine of thirteen adolescent patients with a diagnosis of a so-called
hip-pointer injury demonstrated a discontinuity of the anterior part of the
iliac apophysis on radiographs. Eight of the nine patients improved with
conservative treatment and there was total resolution of symptoms in one to
eight months. The remaining patient, who was skeletally mature at the time
of writing, continued to have recurrent symptoms of discomfort over the
iliac crest during athletic activity. Other reports have described the
discontinuity as a stress fracture, but the natural history in our patients
did not reveal evidence of fracture-healing. However, the discontinuity
disappeared at skeletal maturity in all patients. The radiographic
discontinuity may be an anatomical anomaly, since it was present
bilaterally in all nine patients although only two had symptoms on both
sides.