Type:
Educational Exhibit
Keywords:
Musculoskeletal bone, Musculoskeletal joint, CT, Plain radiographic studies, Education, Surgery, Education and training, Trauma
Authors:
W. Y. Leung, R. Sendanayake
DOI:
10.26044/ranzcr2023/C-164
Background
The ankle joint is a seemingly simple but complex articular system that is prone to injury, ranging from soft tissue and ligamentous injury to simple and complex fractures. Ankle fractures have been observed to affect all ages and genders, with a bimodal distribution involving peaks in age group between 51-60 years followed by age 21-30 years [1, 2]. Plain radiographs and non-contrast computed tomography (CT) with multiplanar reformat are two commonly used imaging modalities to detect and assess injury severity to provide critical information and, if indicated, for surgical planning.
There are numerous osseous and ligamentous components in the ankle joint that provides stability across multiple planes and axes. With the loss of or injury to these structures, the risk of instability of the joint becomes increasingly significant [2]. Therefore, it is pivotal for radiologists to acquire a thorough understanding of the underlying injury mechanism, to correctly classify the injury, and provide accurate evaluations of this complex anatomy to guide treatment.
This pictorial essay demonstrates a case series of ankle fractures according to the injury mechanism using the Weber, Lauge-Hansen and AO (Arbeitsgemeinschaft für Osteosynthesefragen, or in English “Association for the Study of Internal Fixation”)/ OTA (Orthopaedic Trauma Association) classifications. The aim is to recommend ways for radiologists to provide comprehensive and accurate reports with correctly used lexicon and classification systems that are comprehensible and valuable to orthopaedic surgeons.