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Patients with concomitant ankle OA had increased pain, worse clinical outcomes after TKA
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Patients who underwent total knee arthroplasty and had concomitant ankle osteoarthritis experienced increased ankle pain and worse clinical outcomes following surgery, according to results published in The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery.
Researchers measured radiographic parameters of lower limb, ankle and hindfoot alignment preoperatively and 2 years postoperatively among 56 patients who underwent TKA. Of this group, 24 ankles had concomitant ankle OA. Researchers also compared ankle pain and clinical outcomes at 2 years postoperatively between patients with vs. those without OA.
Results showed improvement in the orientation of the ankle joint line relative to the ground from 9.4° of varus to 3.4° of varus. Following TKA, researchers found a 2.2° decrease in the valgus compensation of the hindfoot for the varus tilt of the ankle joint. Compared with the group of patients without ankle OA, researchers noted decreased flexibility of the hindfoot among patients with ankle OA, which resulted in less preoperative valgus compensation. However, due to the smaller amount of change in patients with ankle OA, results showed similar postoperative hindfoot alignment between the two groups. A greater rate of increased ankle pain and worse WOMAC scores following TKA were found among patients with ankle OA.
“Examinations of the ankle joint are probably needed before performing TKA,” the authors wrote. “Our findings should be considered when counseling patients who are undergoing TKA and in managing concomitant ankle pain following TKA.” – by Casey Tingle
Disclosures: Chang reports he received grants from Bio & Medical Technology Development Program of the National Research Foundation and funding from the Ministry of Science & ICT. Please see the full study for a list of all other authors’ relevant financial disclosures.
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