Ankle arthroscopy in children and adolescents

Abstract

Today, ankle arthroscopy is a common surgical procedure that is constantly increasing. The aim of this study was to determine theproportion of ankle arthroscopy in children and adolescents in the total number of arthroscopic interventions on the ankle and todetermine whether there was a diff erence in indications for the procedure between the paediatric and adult populations. Manualsearch of operating room logs from the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Zagreb University Hospital Centre, was performed fora fi ve-year period. During this period, 533 patients underwent ankle arthroscopy, 90 of them younger than 18 years at the time ofsurgery. Patients’ medical history data were reviewed and recorded by a physician not involved in their care. Two leading indicationsfor ankle arthroscopy in the paediatric population were the anterolateral ankle impingement syndrome and osteochondral lesion ofthe talus. This diff ered from the adult population, where the anterior impingement syndrome was the most frequent diagnosis. Theperioperative period was uneventful in all 90 ankle arthroscopies in the paediatric population, whereas two complications wereobserved during the early postoperative period. Based on the results of our research, we can conclude that ankle arthroscopy is a safeand eff ective surgical method to treat miscellaneous ankle disorders in the paediatric population. It should be emphasized that adiff erence exists in the leading indications for ankle arthroscopy between the paediatric and adult populations.