Treatment of open ankle dislocation without associated fractures in a young athlete using external fixation and ligament repair with suture tape augmentation

BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2020 Jun 5;21(1):351. doi: 10.1186/s12891-020-03378-z.

Abstract

Background: Ankle dislocation without fracture is an extremely rare injury because it is usually accompanied by concomitant malleolar fractures from the anatomical and mechanical viewpoints.

Case presentation: We report the case of a 17-year-old woman who was injured while playing basketball. Her ankle was swollen and deformed. Plain X-ray revealed tibiotalar dislocation in the medial direction without any fractures. Immediate reduction and ligament repair using suture tape augmentation were performed.

Conclusions: At 5 months postoperatively, the patient returned to playing basketball without any complaints. After an additional 2 months, the patient participated and played in the Winter Cup 2019 (the national high school basketball tournament in Japan) at the previous performance level.

Keywords: Anterior talofibular ligament; Pure ankle dislocation; Suture tape augmentation; Tibiotalar; Young athlete.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Ankle Injuries / diagnostic imaging
  • Ankle Injuries / surgery*
  • Athletes
  • External Fixators*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Joint Dislocations / diagnostic imaging
  • Joint Dislocations / surgery*
  • Ligaments*
  • Radiography
  • Surgical Tape*
  • Sutures