Maisonneuve fractures treated with delayed surgery / 中华创伤骨科杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To study the clinical effects of delayed surgery for Maisonneuve fractures.Methods Between January 2006 to June 2011,we treated 21 patients with Maisonneuve fracture by delayed surgery.They were 18 men and 3 women,aged from 17 to 63 years (average,36.8 years).Rupture of inferior tibiofibular ligaments was complicated in all,lateral malleolus fracture in 17 cases,medial malleolus fracture in 14 cases,rupture of deltoid ligament in 7 cases,and posterior malleolus fracture in 15 cases.None of them got timely surgery due to complicated injuries,poor skin condition or missed diagnosis.Six patients had surgery after 2 weeks,11 after 3 weeks and 4 after 4 weeks.The interval from injury to surgery ranged from 14 to 32 days,averaging 21.3 days.Fractures of lateral,medial and posterior malleolus were treated with open reduction and internal fixation.Ruptures of deltoid ligament and anterior ligament of inferior tibiofibula were repaired and reconstructed.Functional recovery of the ankle joint was assessed using American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) scoring system.Results The patients were followed up for 10 to 18 months (average,12.3 months).All the fractures healed after an average time of 12.4 weeks (from 10 to 22 weeks).No infection or implant failure was observed in this group.The affected ankle restored inflexion basically to the range of the contralateral 6 months post-surgery,but was limited in the ranges of varus and valgus.Pain was extensively experienced.At the last follow-up,10 patients (47.6％) showed obvious disparity between the 2 sides,and 5 ones had lateral displacement of the talus and widened ankle mortise.AOFAS results were excellent in 5 cases,good in 9,fair in 4 and poor in 3,yielding a good to excellent rate of 66.7％.Conclusion Because delayed surgery increases the difficulties in surgery and functional recovery,early diagnosis and early surgery are crucial for treatment of Maisonneuve fractures to achieve satisfactory outcomes.