Özcan, Seçkin; Koçkara, Nizamettin; Camurcu, Yalkın; Yurten, Hakan

Background: Osteochondral lesions of the talus (OCLTs) secondary to ankle fractures have previously been reported in the literature. However, no study has evaluated OCLTs using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) following ankle fracture treatment. The purpose of our study was to investigate accompanying OCLTs in patients with an ankle fracture and evaluate its relationship with the clinical outcomes. Methods: Fifty-six patients with ankle fractures who were treated with either a nonoperative or operative method at our center between June 2016 and February 2017 were included in this prospective comparative study (37 men and 19 women; mean age, 44.6 ± 13 years; range, 20-65 years). The mean American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (AOFAS) scores were used to evaluate the clinical results in all patients in the second month and second year. The second-month ankle MR images were evaluated for OCLTs in all patients. Thirty patients were treated operatively and 26 nonoperatively. Results: Accompanying OCLTs were detected in 19 of 56 patients (34%). Our results showed no statistically significant association between OCLT and fracture type, as well as the treatment type. In the second postoperative month, the mean AOFAS scores were 87.2 ± 10.8 and 77.6 ± 12.0 in patients with and without OCLTs, respectively (P =.005). In the second postoperative year, the mean AOFAS scores were 81.3 ± 6.8 and 86.2 ± 8.4 in patients with and without OCLTs, respectively (P =.031). The mean AOFAS score significantly decreased in the OCLT group in the second-year control, whereas a significant increase was observed in patients without OCLTs (P =.026 and P <.001, respectively). Conclusion: According to our results, the accompanying OCLTs were found in one-third of patients treated for ankle fractures. We observed a significant correlation between OCLT presence and the AOFAS score. According to the AOFAS score, OCLTs statistically significantly affected clinical results at 2 years. Level of Evidence: Level II, prospective comparative study.

Camurcu, Yalkin; Ucpunar, Hanifi; Yapici, Furkan; Karakose, Resit; Ozcan, Seckin; Cobden, Adem; Duman, Serda; Sofu, Hakan

Background: The aim of this study was to compare the clinical and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) outcomes of arthroscopic microfracture (MF) plus chitosan-glycerol phosphate/blood implant and MF alone for the treatment of the osteochondral lesions of the talus (OCLTs). Methods: Patients who underwent either MF plus chitosan (group 1, n = 32) or MF alone (group 2, n = 31) between 2015 and 2019 in 2 separate time periods were retrospectively analyzed. Visual analog scale (VAS) score and American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (AOFAS) score were used for clinical evaluation. The magnetic resonance observation of cartilage repair tissue (MOCART) system was used for MRI evaluation. The mean follow-up time was 32 ± 13 months (range, 12-61 months). Results: Postoperatively, we detected significant improvements in both groups in terms of VAS and AOFAS scores. However, we observed no statistically significant difference between groups in terms of clinical scores, except the mean VAS function score, which was significantly higher in group 1 (P =.022). According to MOCART scale, complete repair with the filling of the chondral defect and intactness of the surface of the repair tissue were more common in group 1. However, these parameters did not significantly differ between groups (P =.257 and.242, respectively). Conclusion: Arthroscopic MF plus chitosan glycerol phosphate/blood implant did not result in better clinical and MRI outcomes compared with MF alone in the treatment of OCLTs. Level of Evidence: Level III, retrospective comparative study.