The purpose of this study was to evaluate the distribution rate of etiologies leading to ankle arthritis and to quantify and compare the important clinical and radiologic variables among these etiologic groups. We evaluated data from 390 patients (406 ankles) who consulted our center because of painful end-stage ankle osteoarthritis (OA) by using medical history, physical examination, and radiography. Posttraumatic ankle OA was seen in 78% of the cases (n = 318), secondary arthritis in 13% (n = 52), and primary OA in 9% (n = 36). The average American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) hindfoot score was 38 points (range, 0-74 points), range of motion was 22°(range, 0°-65°), and visual analog scale for pain was 6.8 (range, 2-10). Patients with posttraumatic endstage ankle OA were younger than patients with primary OA. The average tibiotalar alignment was 88°(range, 51°-116°) and did not differ between the etiologic groups. Our study showed trauma is the main cause of ankle OA and primary OA is rare. In the majority of patients with ankle OA the average tibiotalar alignment is varus regardless of the underlying etiology.

In this investigation, the effect of initial end contact on medial collateral ligament (MCL) healing was studied in the rabbit model. Sixty-eight 1-year-old New Zealand white rabbits were separated into two groups. In one group, a 4 mm saggital Z-plasty was performed in the right MCL midsubstance (contact group), and in the other group, an analogous 4 mm midsubstance segment was removed (gap group). Left knees were unoperated to serve as internal contralateral MCL controls. Animals had unrestricted cage activity until sacrifice in groups of eight at 3, 6, 14, and 40 weeks postoperatively. Early results demonstrated that contact and gap injuries healed with what appeared to be scar tissue both morphologically and biomechanically. In both groups, laxities recovered to their contralateral values within 6 weeks and biomechanical viscoelastic behaviors recovered to 68-92% of contralaterals by 14-40 weeks. Despite these similarities, contacts showed morphological and biomechanical evidence of improved healing over gaps. Contact scars remodeled more quickly, recovered laxity more quickly, and were generally closer to contralaterals than gaps in terms of their structural strength, stiffness, and material behaviors, after 40 weeks of healing. With the exception of appearances and failure stress, all measured properties of contact healing MCLs were statistically indistinguishable from contralateral MCLs at 40 weeks of healing. These advantages of contact healing in this model support speculations that there are differences in the early rate and possibly in the later quality of ligament healing when cut rabbit MCL ends are in proximity. Longer-term studies to define end points and mechanisms of healing are required.

A structural graft often is needed to fill gaps during reconstructive procedures of the ankle and hindfoot.

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