Background Patients with ankle arthritis often present with concomitant hindfoot deformity, which may involve the tibiotalar and subtalar joints. However, the possible compensatory mechanisms of these two mechanically linked joints are not well known. Questions/purposes In this study we sought to (1) compare ankle and hindfoot alignment of our study cohort with end-stage ankle arthritis with that of a control group; (2) explore the frequency of compensated malalignment between the tibiotalar and subtalar joints in our study cohort; and (3) assess the intraobserver and interobserver reliability of classification methods of hindfoot alignment used in this study. Methods Between March 2006 and September 2013, we performed 419 ankle arthrodesis and ankle replacements (380 patients). In this study, we evaluated radiographs for 233 (56%) ankles (226 patients) which met the following inclusion criteria: (1) no prior subtalar arthrodesis; (2) no previously failed total ankle replacement or ankle arthrodesis; (3) with complete conventional radiographs (all three ankle views were required: mortise, lateral, and hindfoot alignment view). Ankle and hindfoot alignment was assessed by measurement of the medial distal tibial angle, tibial talar surface angle, talar tilting angle, tibiocalcaneal axis angle, and moment arm of calcaneus. The obtained values were compared with those observed in the control group of 60 ankles from 60 people. Only those without obvious degenerative changes of the tibiotalar and subtalar joints and without previous surgeries of the ankle or hindfoot were included in the control group. Demographic data for the patients with arthritis and the control group were comparable (sex, p = 0.321; age, p = 0.087). The frequency of compensated malalignment between the tibiotalar and subtalar joints, defined as tibiocalcaneal angle or moment arm of the calcaneus being greater or smaller than the same 95% CI statistical cutoffs from the control group, was tallied. All ankle radiographs were independently measured by two observers to determine the interobserver reliability. One of Each author certifies that he or she has no commercial associations (eg, consultancies, stock ownership, equity interest, patent/licensing arrangement etc) that might pose a conflict of interest in connection with the submitted article. All ICMJE Conflict of Interest Forms for authors and Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research editors and board members are on file with the publication and can be viewed on request. Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research neither advocates nor endorses the use of any treatment, drug, or device. Readers are encouraged to always seek additional information, including FDAapproval status, of any drug or device prior to clinical use. Each author certifies that his or her institution approved the human protocol for this investigation, that all investigations were conducted in conformity with ethical principles of research, and that informed consent for participation in the study was obtained. This ...

Level III, retrospective comparative study.

Serial manipulation and casting followed by limited surgery, consisting of percutaneous tenotomy of the Achilles tendon and a small medial incision to either palpate the talonavicular joint or perform capsulotomies of the talonavicular joint and the anterior aspect of the subtalar joint to ensure accurate reduction and pin fixation, result in excellent short-term correction of the deformity while preserving subtalar and ankle motion in patients with rigid congenital vertical talus associated with neuromuscular and/or genetic syndromes.