A rare cause of chest pain: spontaneous sternum fracture

Spontaneous sternum fracture is a rare condition which can be seen especially among patients with known risk factors such as osteoporosis or multiple myeloma. Lateral chest X-ray is sufficient in diagnosis but sometimes can be neglected during the initial evaluation of the chest pain. A 80-year-old female patient with no known risk factors related to fracture and no medical history of fractures presented to the emergency department with chest pain. While cardiac marker enzymes were normal, lateral chest X-ray and CT scan showed displaced fracture line on the sternum, and the patient diagnosed with spontaneous sternum fracture. We have presented the case, reviewed the literature of the disease, and concluded that it is important to remember that sternum fracture with unidentified etiology is one of the rare causes of chest pain.