Knee dislocation in a patient with congenital pain insensitivity—a case report

This case report describes a patient who suffered a knee dislocation with a vascular injury following a high-velocity injury. In addition he suffered with congenital pain insensitivity. As a result there was a delay in diagnosing his major injury. In addition he underwent conservative therapy despite multidirectional knee instability. After a prolonged course of non-operative treatment, he underwent reconstruction of anterior and posterior cruciate ligaments. Following operative treatment, knee stability was dramatically improved. The case report highlights the difficulties in diagnosing patients with major injuries who suffer with pain insensitivity and shows that operative treatment for the multidirectional knee instability gives a more favourable outcome than non-operative treatment.