Acute clinical evaluation for the diagnosis of lateral ankle ligament injuries is useful: A comparison between the acute and delayed settings.

PURPOSE: To determine the diagnostic value of seven injury history variables, nine clinical tests (including the combination thereof) and overall clinical suspicion for complete discontinuity of the lateral ankle ligaments in the acute (0-2 days post-injury) and delayed setting (5-8 days post-injury). METHODS: All acute ankle injuries in adult athletes (≥18 years) presenting up to 2 days post-injury were assessed for eligibility. Athletes were excluded if imaging studies demonstrated a frank fracture or 3 T MRI could not be acquired within 10 days post-injury. Using standardized history variables and clinical tests, acute clinical evaluation was performed within 2 days post-injury. Delayed clinical evaluation was performed 5-8 days post-injury. Overall, clinical suspicion was recorded after clinical evaluation. MRI was used as the reference standard. RESULTS: Between February 2018 and February 2020, a total of 117 acute ankle injuries were screened for eligibility, of which 43 were included in this study. Complete discontinuity of lateral ankle ligaments was observed in 23 (53%) acute ankle injuries. In the acute setting, lateral swelling had 100% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 82-100) sensitivity, haematoma had 85% (95% CI: 61-96) specificity and the anterior drawer test had 100% (95% CI: 77-100) specificity. In the delayed setting, sensitivity for the presence of haematoma improved from 43% (95% CI: 24-65) to 91% (95% CI: 70-98; p < 0.01) and the sensitivity of the anterior drawer test improved from 21% (95% CI: 7-46) to 61% (95% CI: 39-80; p = 0.02). Clinical suspicion had a positive likelihood ratio (LR) of 4.35 (95% CI: 0.55-34.17) in the acute setting and a positive LR of 6.09 (95% CI: 1.57-23.60) in the delayed setting. CONCLUSIONS: In the acute setting, clinical evaluation can exclude complete discontinuity (e.g., absent lateral swelling) and identify athletes with a high probability of complete discontinuity (e.g., positive anterior drawer test) of the lateral ankle ligaments. In the delayed setting, the sensitivity of common clinical findings increases resulting in an improved diagnostic accuracy. In clinical practice, this study underlines the importance of meticulous clinical evaluation in the acute setting. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III.

Aspetar clinical guidelines: Ramadan fasting and exercise for healthy individuals.

Healthy adult Muslims who practice Ramadan fasting (RF) follow strict religious rules regarding their lifestyle. RF influences several parameters, including nutrition, hydration, and sleep habits, and can potentially reduce physical performance. It seems that RF prevents athletes from training and participating in competitions, and prevents the general community from engaging in physical exercise. This places practicing Muslim athletes at a competitive disadvantage. Therefore, the goal of this guide was to provide practical recommendations, based on expert panel consensus, for healthy athletes and their support staff on how to adopt appropriate behavioral, social, and psychological strategies to cope with the changes and constraints resulting from RF. The recommendations developed in this guide are not limited to prescribing appropriate exercise during the month of Ramadan (ie; schedule, frequency, intensity, duration, type of exercise, and training load), but cover different aspects of lifestyle such as nutrition, hydration, and sleep, and address psychosocial and cognitive aspects related to RF. These recommendations are intended for healthy individuals. Patients with chronic illnesses should refer to their doctor to ensure an eventual safe practice.

Acute clinical evaluation for syndesmosis injury has high diagnostic value.

PURPOSE: To determine the diagnostic value of injury history, physical examination, six syndesmosis tests and overall clinical suspicion for syndesmosis injury. METHODS: All athletes (> 18 yrs) with an acute ankle injury presenting within 7 days post-injury were assessed for eligibility. Acute ankle injuries were excluded if imaging studies demonstrated a frank fracture or 3 T MRI could not be acquired within 10 days post-injury. Standardized injury history was recorded, and physical examination was performed by an Orthopaedic Surgeon or Sports Medicine Physician. Overall clinical suspicion was documented prior to MRI. Multivariate logistic regression was used to determine the association between independent predictors and syndesmosis injury. RESULTS: Between September 2016 and July 2019, a total of 150 acute ankle injuries were included. The median time from injury to acute clinical evaluation was 2 days (IQR 2). Prior to clinical evaluation, the median patient reported Visual Analog Scale for pain was 8/10 (IQR 2). Syndesmosis injury was present in 26 acute ankle injuries. An eversion mechanism of injury had a positive LR 3.47 (CI 95% 1.55-7.77). The squeeze tests had a positive LR of 2.20 (CI 95% 1.29-3.77) and a negative LR of 0.68 (CI 95% 0.48-0.98). Overall clinical suspicion had a sensitivity of 73% (CI 95% 52-88) and negative predictive value of 89% (CI 95% 78-95). Multivariate regression analyses demonstrated significant association for eversion mechanism of injury (OR 4.99; CI 95% 1.56-16.01) and a positive squeeze test (OR 3.25; CI 95% 1.24-8.51). CONCLUSIONS: In an acute clinical setting with patients reporting high levels of ankle pain, a negative overall clinical suspicion reduces the probability of syndesmosis injury. Eversion mechanism of injury and a positive squeeze test are associated with higher odds of syndesmosis injury. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Level III.

Limited intrarater and interrater reliability of acute ligamentous ankle injuries on 3 T MRI.

OBJECTIVES: To determine the diagnostic reliability of the Schneck grading system for acute ligamentous injuries of (1) the three major ligamentous ankle complexes, (2) the individual ankle ligaments and (3) the Sikka classification for syndesmosis injury. METHODS: All acute ankle injuries in adult athletes (≥18 years), presenting to the outpatient department of a specialised Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Hospital, within 7 days postinjury were screened for inclusion. Ankle injuries were excluded if imaging demonstrated a frank ankle fracture or if the 3 T MRI study could not be acquired within 10 days postinjury. Two radiologists graded the three major ligamentous complexes (lateral ankle complex, deltoid complex and syndesmosis complex) and their comprising individual ligaments according the four-grade Schneck grading system. Syndesmotic injuries were classified according the four-grade Sikka classification for consequent injury of the individual syndesmosis ligaments and the deltoid complex. Agreement and kappa (K) statistics were calculated to determine intrarater and interrater reliability. RESULTS: Between September 2016 and September 2018, a total of 92 MR scans were obtained (87 patients). Interrater and intrarater reliability of the Schneck grading system was moderate to substantial for the lateral ankle complex (K=0.47-0.76), fair to almost perfect for the syndesmosis complex (K=0.37-0.89) and fair to moderate for the deltoid complex (K=0.14-0.51). For the individual ligaments, kappa values ranged from moderate to substantial for the anterior talofibular ligament (ATFL) (K=0.55-0.73), fair to substantial for the calcaneofibular ligament (K=0.31-0.62) and fair to almost perfect for the anteroinferior tibiofibular ligament (AITFL) (K=0.36-0.89). Diagnostic reliability of the Sikka classification ranged from moderate to almost perfect (K=0.51-0.95). CONCLUSIONS: Grading of the three major ligamentous complexes and of the individual ankle ligaments according the Schneck grading system resulted in limited diagnostic reliability. When dichotomised for the presence of complete discontinuity, the interrater reliability of the Schneck grading system improved to substantial and almost perfect for the ATFL and AITFL, respectively. Classification of syndesmosis injury according the Sikka classification resulted in moderate interrater reliability.

Translation into modern standard Arabic, cross-cultural adaptation and psychometric properties' evaluation of the Lower Extremity Functional Scale (LEFS) in Arabic-speaking athletes with Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury.

BACKGROUND: The Lower Extremity Functional Scale evaluates the functional status of patients that have lower extremity conditions of musculoskeletal origin. Regional Arabic dialects often create barriers to clear communication and comparative research. We aimed to cross-culturally adapt the Lower Extremity Functional Scale in modern standard Arabic that is widely used and understood in the Middle East and North Africa region, and assess its psychometric properties. METHODS: Cross-cultural adaptation followed a combination of recommended guidelines. For psychometric evaluation 150 patients with anterior cruciate ligament injury and 65 asymptomatic individuals were recruited. All measurement properties as indicated by the Consensus-based Standards for the selection of health status Measurement Instruments recommendations were evaluated, including content-relevance analysis, structural validity, longitudinal reproducibility, anchor- and distribution-based methods of responsiveness, as well as the longitudinal pattern of change of Lower Extremity Functional Scale in anterior cruciate ligament injured patients' functional status. RESULTS: The questionnaire presented excellent internal consistency (α = 0.96), reliability (0.80-0.98), and good convergent validity (ρ = 0.85). For reproducibility testing: minimal detectable change was 9.26 points; for responsiveness assessment: minimal clinically important difference was 9 points and presented moderate effect sizes (Glass'Δ = 0.71, Cohen's d = 0.81). Its unidimensionality was not confirmed and an exploratory factor analysis indicated a 2-factor solution explaining 78.1% of the variance. CONCLUSION: The Arabic Lower Extremity Functional Scale presented acceptable psychometric properties comparable to the original version. The Arabic version of Lower Extremity Functional Scale can be used in research and clinical practice to assess the functional status of Arabic-patients suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury.