Epidemiology of Ankle Arthritis

Description: Epidemiology of Ankle Arthritis The purpose of our study was to identify the cause of symptomatic ankle arthritis in a consecutive series of patients presenting in a tertiary care setting.Of the 639 arthritic ankles, 445 (70%) were post-traumatic, 76 (12%) were rheumatoid disease and 46 (7%) were idiopathic (primary osteoarthritis). The post-traumatic ankle arthritis patients were most commonly associated with past rotational ankle fractures. The majority of ankle arthritis is associated with previous trauma, whereas the primary cause of knee or hip arthritis is idiopathic. Unique strategies to prevent or treat post-traumatic ankle arthritis are needed.
Report of a Consecutive Series of 639 Patients from a Tertiary Orthopaedic Center Charles L Saltzman, MD, Professor, Michael L Salamon, MD, G Michael Blanchard, MD, Thomas Huff, MD, Andrea Hayes, Joseph A Buckwalter, MD, and Annunziato Amendola, MD Iowa Orthop J. 2005; 25: 44–46. Full text