Ankle Sprains Show Link to Development of Osteoarthritis

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Ankle Sprains Show Link to Development of Osteoarthritis

26 Feb 2005 Medical News Today

Ankle sprains may predispose a patient to osteoarthritis according to a study

presented at the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society's Annual Winter

Meeting in Washington, DC, today.

The study was conduced by Victor Valderrabano, MD, and Beat Hintermann, MD, of

Orthopaedic Department of the University of Basel Switzerland. The purpose of

their study was to quantify the type of ligament injury that will develop into

post-traumatic ankle arthritis.

Osteoarthritis is the degeneration of a joint. Approximately 50 million adults

in the United States and 15% of the world's adult population suffer disability

resulting from osteoarthritis. Ankle ligament lesions, or sprains, are the most

common injuries in sports and recreational activities. They account for about

25% of the injuries that occur in running and jumping sports.

Such a disease causes inflammation, cartilage damage, formation of cysts,

decrease in range of motion, and muscle imbalances in the effected joint.

Despite the conservative treatments and physical rehabilitation management of

acute ankle sprains, 20-40% of patients with these injuries experience chronic

ankle instability. Of those patients with ankle instability, 70-80% develop

posttraumatic ankle arthritis

Patients with osteoarthritis suffer from severe pain and eventually have

difficulty performing daily activities. Initially, patients only feel pain while

walking or exercising, but eventually the pain affects them at night. With the

advancement of the disease, patients develop a noticeable limp and painful joint

stiffness and an inability to work.

Dr.'s Valderrabano and Hintermann studied 268 patients, 47 of whom suffered from

chronic ankle instability with recurrent sprains. “The results of the study were

surprising,” Dr. Valderrabano said. The study showed that 18% of the patients

were suffering from arthritis either caused by chronic ankle instability as a

result of an ankle sprain. “Another surprise was that the time between the ankle

sprain and the development of arthritis was quite long, an average of 21 years,”

he said. Patients injured themselves most frequently while playing sports.

This study shows the importance of the recognition of post-traumatic ankle

arthritis after chronic ankle instability or ankle sprain. A medical doctor

treating ankle sprains should be aware of this link and perform an intensive

rehabilitation program, with a thorough follow-up a few years after the initial

treatment. If doctors are able to catch the instable ankle at an early stage,

the likelihood of later development of osteoarthritis will decrease.

Dedicated to advancing research and educational objectives in orthopaedic foot

and ankle medicine, the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society is the

leading medical organization for orthopaedic foot care specialists...AOFAS

members are the MDs who specialize in the foot and ankle.

American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS)

1216 Pine St., Ste 201

Seattle, WA 98102, USA

Phone 800-235-4855

Fax 206-223-1178

http://www.aofas.org