Ligamentous Injuries and the Risk of Associated Tissue Damage in Acute Ankle Sprains in Athletes

Abstract

About 20% of athletes referred for MRI after suffering an acute ankle sprain had evidence of a syndesmotic injury regardless of lateral ligament involvement, while more than half had evidence of any lateral ligament injury without syndesmotic involvement. Concomitant talar osseous and deltoid ligament injuries are common.

Isolated syndesmotic injuries in acute ankle sprains: diagnostic significance of clinical examination and MRI

“…This is in line with data from other studies [3,8,9,14,30]. There was a high frequency of peri-, intraligamentous oedema in both the anterior (49 %) and the posterior (28 %) tibiofibular ligaments.…”

Current trends in the diagnosis and management of syndesmotic injury

“…This appears to be an entirely different population than the traditional syndesmosis disruption that occurs in the presence of a fracture; further, these patients remain some of the most poorly studied. The rate of isolated syndesmotic injury in ankle sprains has been reported to occur in up to 20% of the athletic population [12]. Both stable and unstable syndesmotic injuries are more common in collision sports, and when not treated properly they have been associated with prolonged disability [7, 13, 14•].…”

Return to Play Following Ankle Sprain and Lateral Ligament Reconstruction

“…Although MRI may identify associated pathology, such as osteochondral lesions, peroneal tendon tears, and loose bodies, the sensitivity of identifying such is still lower than with arthroscopy. 36,37 Clinicians should be systematic in evaluating the ankle joint during arthroscopy so as not to overlook these subtle concomitant injuries.…”