Outcomes Following Arthroscopy for Anterior Impingement in the Ankle Joint: Need for Gender as a Variable in Analysis

CATEGORY: Ankle; Arthroscopy INTRODUCTION/PURPOSE: To provide an overview of the clinical outcomes of arthroscopic procedures used as a treatment strategy for anterior ankle impingement and to determine if gender affects outcome. METHODS: A systematic literature search of the Medline, Embase, and Cochrane databases was performed during June of 2019. The combination of search terms utilized included the following: ankle, impingement, syndrome, talus, compression, osteophyte, arthroscopy, surgery, procedures, and treatment. Two reviewers independently performed data extraction consisting of demographic data, intraoperative arthroscopic data, functional outcome scores, patient satisfaction, complications, return to play, and gender differences. RESULTS: Twenty-eight articles evaluating 1,506 patients were included in this systematic review [Table 1]. Sixty percent and 14% of studies assessed anterolateral and anteromedial impingement, respectively. All studies (16/16, 100%) that evaluated functional outcome reported improvements in AOFAS, VAS, and FFI Scores [Table 2]. The average complication rate was 3.89% [Table 3]. Average return to sport was 8 months. The most common associated pathologies found during arthroscopic evaluation were synovitis, osteophytes, and meniscoid lesions. Four studies (15%) failed to report gender as a demographic variable. Only 5 (17%) studies reported gender analysis, with one demonstrating that male patients had worse outcomes at 6-year follow-up. CONCLUSION: Our systematic review suggests that arthroscopic treatment for anterior ankle impingement provides good to excellent functional outcomes and low complication rates in the majority of patients. However, current analyses lack outcome evaluations that compare male and female populations. Future studies should perform such assessments to determine whether gender differences play a role in outcomes following arthroscopic intervention.