What are the Surgical Treatments for Ankle Arthritis?

So, your orthopedic surgeon diagnosed you with ankle arthritis. You still have limiting pain despite conservative treatments. What are your surgical options for ankle arthritis?

When to consider surgery for ankle arthritis? 

In general, surgery is a final treatment course for any degenerative condition, like arthritis. When all conservative treatments have failed, it is reasonable to consider surgery. 

I counsel my patients that when pain limits what you want to do and what you need to do, day to day, it may be time to consider surgery. 

Do I need surgery for my ankle arthritis?

All surgeries have risks, and ankle arthritis surgery is no exception. But if the pain really limits function, it may be time to consider your risks and benefits of surgery. 

The orthopedic surgeons at Southwest Orthopedic Group can evaluate your ankle and risk profile and customize your treatment for ankle arthritis. 

It’s also important to discuss with your orthopedic surgeon your expectations after surgery. While many people have improvement in pain and function, you won’t have the ankle you had prior to developing arthritis. 

What are the surgical treatments for ankle arthritis?

If the arthritis is minimal, an ankle debridement or cartilage regeneration procedure can be considered. If there are only symptomatic bone spurs, typically in the front or back of the ankle, they can be removed. 

Additionally, if you only have a small area of cartilage loss, osteochondral defect, this can be treated with a joint-preserving procedure. 

Many times, the arthritis affects the entire joint, so these ‘joint saving’ procedures will not work. 

For end-stage ankle arthritis, an ankle fusion (arthrodesis) or total ankle replacement can be considered. 

What is an ankle arthrodesis (fusion)?

The purpose of this surgery is to minimize pain and increase function. An ankle fusion uses screws and plates to make the tibia (shin bone) and talus (floor of ankle) grow together as one bone. If successful, there is no motion of the ankle, but there is minimal pain.

What is a total ankle replacement?

A total ankle replacement involves removing all of the cartilage and some bone from the ankle joint. Then, cartilage/bone is replaced with metal and plastic. If there is continued deformity after the replacement is placed, sometimes additional procedures are required. The total ankle replacement preserves some motion of the ankle. 

In future posts, we will dive further into ankle fusion and replacement.

The American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (AOFAS) has more information about ankle fractures at FootCareMD.

For more questions or to set up an evaluation, contact Dr. Stautberg’s office at 281-977-4870. 

Author

Eugene Stautberg, MD