Acute plastic bowing deformity: a review of the literature.

An acute plastic bowing deformity (APBD) represents a subtle form of an acute fracture. This entity was not formally recognized until recently when Borden demonstrated the almost imperceptible deformity radiographically. While found in both the adult and pediatric populations, the biomechanical properties of children's bones make them more prone to this injury. In either population, the lack of an obvious cortical defect lends this injury to misdiagnosis, mismanagement, and subsequent complications.