Bruce E. Cohen

End-stage ankle arthritis is a painful and functionally limiting condition that can significantly worsen quality of life. Ankle arthrodesis, a common surgical procedure for ankle arthritis, provides good pain relief, patient satisfaction, and clinical outcomes when fusion is achieved. Potential disadvantages include malunion and nonunion, malalignment, limited range of motion (ROM), altered gait mechanics, and development of adjacent joint arthritis requiring reoperation.

The traditional extensile lateral approach for calcaneus fractures is associated with an unacceptably high rate of wound complications. A more limited incision approach through the sinus tarsus provides excellent exposure with fewer soft tissue problems postoperatively. This technique, reported here, is indicated for Sanders II and III displaced intra-articular calcaneus fractures. Short-term results demonstrate a very low rate of wound complications, hardware pain, and sural neuritis and satisfactory fracture reduction based on follow-up radiographs.