DOI:10.2214/AJR.08.1654
AJR 2009; 192:W79
© American Roentgen Ray Society
Achilles Wiiitis
Peter Beddy,
Ruth Dunne and
Catherine de Blacam
St. James' Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
WEB—This is a Web exclusive article.
We report the case of a 42-year-old woman who presented with acute left
ankle pain after playing Wii Fit on her new Nintendo Wii. The Wii is an
interactive computer game console that enables participants to play sports
(e.g., golf, tennis, running) and other games from the safety of their living
rooms.
The patient was stretching her leg on the interactive footpad and felt a
severe pain in her left lower calf. MRI revealed a partial tear of her left
Achilles tendon (Fig. 1A,
1B). An Achilles tendon tear or
rupture occurs when an excess load is applied to the tendon, either during a
single episode or over a period of time. The most common mechanism of injury
is sudden forced dorsiflexion of the foot after active plantar flexion. The
injury occurs predominantly in sporting activities such as sprinting,
basketball, and volleyball, which require a sudden push-off from the foot.
These injuries are seen most commonly in men between the ages of 30 and 50
years who have no previous history of injury and who exercise
infrequently—the so-called "weekend warrior"
[1,
2]. Mechanical factors and a
sedentary lifestyle also play a role in the pathology of these injuries
[2,
3].
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Fig. 1A —42-year-old woman who presented with acute left ankle pain
after playing Nintendo Wii Fit. Axial (A) and sagittal (B) STIR
MR images obtained through left lower calf reveal high-signal-intensity area
in left Achilles tendon, consistent with partial tear.
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Fig. 1B —42-year-old woman who presented with acute left ankle pain
after playing Nintendo Wii Fit. Axial (A) and sagittal (B) STIR
MR images obtained through left lower calf reveal high-signal-intensity area
in left Achilles tendon, consistent with partial tear.
|
|
To our knowledge, this case of "Wiiitis" is the first reported
case of an Achilles injury occurring on the Wii computer console and is a new
variant of "Nintendinitis"
[4,
5]. This case highlights the
variety of injuries that can occur with these new interactive sports games and
reminds participants to be aware that even the living room can be a
treacherous sporting environment.
References
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recreational sport activity in Achilles tendon rupture: a clinical,
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Med 1989; 17:338
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Achilles tendon rupture in a Danish county. Injury1998; 29:651
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- Saltzman CL, Tearse DS. Achilles tendon injuries. J Am
Acad Orthop Surg 1998; 6:316
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- Bonis J. Acute Wiiitis. N Engl J Med2007; 356:2431
–2432[Free Full Text]
- Robinson RJ, Barron DA, Grainger AJ, Venkatesh R. Wii knee.
Emerg Radiol 2008;15
: 255–257[CrossRef][Medline]
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