Soft Tissue Reconstruction After Total Ankle Arthroplasty

Soft-Tissue Reconstruction of Complicated Total Ankle Arthroplasty

BACKGROUND

Total ankle arthroplasty (TAA) is a popular modality to treat end-stage arthritis or internal ankle derangement. Unfortunately, failure rates remain undesirably high, with severe complications, including prosthesis failure, ankle fusion, and amputation. The importance of a stable soft-tissue envelope for coverage of implant compromise has been previously described, but the predictive factors for successful salvage of complicated TAA remain poorly understood.

METHODS

A retrospective review was conducted of patients requiring soft-tissue reconstruction following TAA wound complications. Patient demographics, history, microbiological data, reconstructive approach, and outcomes data were collected. Statistical analysis was used to abstract factors associated with unsuccessful prosthetic salvage.

RESULTS

In all, 13 patients met inclusion criteria: 8 (61.5%) achieved prosthetic salvage, and 5 (38.5%) failed. The majority (90.9%) of patients presented with infected joints. Reconstructive techniques included skin grafts, dermal substitutes, locoregional flaps, and free tissue transfer. Successful prosthetic salvage was associated with shorter time intervals between wound diagnosis and index reconstructive surgical intervention (median: 20 days for salvage vs 804 days for failure; P = .014). Additionally, salvage was associated with reduced time from the index orthopaedic/podiatric surgical intervention to the index reconstructive surgery procedure (12 vs 727 days; P = .027).

CONCLUSION

The prognosis of complicated TAA requiring soft-tissue reconstruction remains poor, especially in patients who present with infected joints. Several reconstructive techniques, ranging from simple skin grafts to complex free tissue transfers, can be used successfully. Early intervention to achieve soft-tissue coverage is crucial in maximizing salvage rates in the setting of complicated and infected TAA.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level IV.

Post-operative management after total ankle arthroplasty: A systematic review of the literature

BACKGROUND

Currently, there is no consensus on the most appropriate post-operative management for patients undergoing total ankle arthroplasty. The aim of this study is therefore to offer a systematic review of the pertaining literature to identify current post-operative protocols and describe possible differences.

METHODS

A systematic review to identify recent studies concerning the post-operative management after total ankle arthroplasty was conducted. Five topics were analyzed: length of hospital stay, type and duration of immobilization, weight-bearing management, post-operative pharmacological therapies, adopted rehabilitation scheme.

RESULTS

Eighty-four studies met the inclusion criteria and were included in the review process. Most of the papers appear to have conflicting opinions with no consensus and homogeneous protocols.

CONCLUSION

Due to various methodological limitations, it is not possible to provide sufficiently supported evidence-based recommendations, and it is therefore difficult to determine the superiority of one post-operative protocol over the others after total ankle arthroplasty.

Fixed-Bearing Trabecular Metal Total Ankle Arthroplasty Using the Transfibular Approach for End-Stage Ankle Osteoarthritis

This multicenter prospective cohort study assessed the safety and performance of the Trabecular Metal Total Ankle System (TM Ankle; Zimmer) for primary total ankle arthroplasty (TAA).

Incidence and Risk Factors for Flap Coverage After Total Ankle Arthroplasty

BACKGROUND

Wound complications following total ankle arthroplasty (TAA) can have a significant impact on patient morbidity, particularly when they require flap coverage. We sought to determine the risk factors associated with the need for flap coverage after TAA and hypothesized that medical and operative risk factors such as diabetes and additional procedures would be associated with the need for flap coverage after TAA.

METHODS

We performed a single-center retrospective review of TAAs from April 2007 to February 2019. Patient demographics and medical comorbidities were collected, in addition to other procedures performed at the time of TAA. Patients were stratified by the need for flap coverage, and unadjusted inferential statistics were performed to evaluate the risk factors associated with subsequent need for flap coverage.

RESULTS

Among 2065 patients undergoing TAA, 28 (1.4%) patients required flap coverage after the index arthroplasty. Patients requiring flap coverage were older (P = .045), had higher Charlson comorbidity indices (P = .017), and had higher rates of diabetes and pulmonary disease (P = .038). Patients requiring flap coverage also had higher rates of additional procedures (P = .043, P = .007). The most common flap was a radial forearm free flap, which was performed in 14 (50%) patients. Twenty-one patients (75%) requiring flap coverage had a stable, plantigrade foot at median 1.5-year follow-up.

CONCLUSION

Patient and operative risk factors, including advanced age, increased comorbidity burden, diabetes, pulmonary disease, and increased number of simultaneous procedures, were significantly associated with need for subsequent flap coverage. This should be considered as the indications for TAA expand.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Level III, retrospective, prognostic cohort study.

The Use of Closed Incision Negative Pressure Therapy Immediately After Total Ankle Arthroplasty Surgeries

Introduction Total ankle arthroplasty (TAA) has become a common procedure in the treatment of end-stage ankle arthritis. Most prostheses utilize an anterior ankle approach, which has been shown to have incisional complication rates of up to 28%, including dehiscence and infection. Wounds in this area can be catastrophic to patient outcomes. Preventing incisional wounds would significantly benefit the patient. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of closed incision negative pressure therapy (ciNPT) in reducing incisional dehiscence and surgical site infection (SSI) after TAA. Materials and methods A retrospective chart review that was approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) was performed on patients undergoing TAA. Inclusion criteria were patients undergoing TAA with an anterior incision and ciNPT placed immediately in the operating room. Comorbidities associated with increased wound complications were recorded. Identification of any incisional dehiscence, infections, or deviations from normal postoperative recovery attributed to the former was also recorded. Results Twenty-eight patients met the inclusion criteria. The average age of the patients at the time of surgery was 68 years. Comorbidities associated with compromised healing were obesity (45%), current or former smoking (45%), diabetes (3.5%), and rheumatoid arthritis (7%). There were no postoperative wound complications (100% incisional healing). No patient required any wound-care intervention or had an SSI. None of the patients had any delay in the normal postoperative course. Conclusion Avoiding wound complications in TAA patients is critical to the success of the procedure. This retrospective case series demonstrated 100% healing with the utilization of the ciNPT in both normal and high-risk patients with decreased healing potential. Our results showed a substantial decrease in wound complications and SSIs compared to historical reports. We recommend ciNPT for all TAA procedures utilizing an anterior incision to decrease the risk for wound complications and SSIs.