The Chrisman-Snook procedure for instability of the lateral ankle
ligaments, first described in 1969, reconstructs the anterior talofibular
ligament and the calcaneofibular ligament using one-half of the peroneus
brevis tendon, routed through tunnels in the fibula and calcaneus. In the
present long-term evaluation of the results of this procedure, forty-eight
of sixty ankles, in fifty-seven patients, were assessed after a mean
follow-up of ten years (range, four to twenty-four years). The results were
excellent in thirty-eight ankles, good in seven, fair in two, and poor in
one. The two ankles with a fair result were improved but still had some
persistent instability, while the ankle with a poor result (no improvement)
was in a patient with generalized ligament laxity. All three patients with
a fair or poor result had had a severe reinjury to the ankle. Based on the
findings in this study, we concluded that this procedure will restore good
long-term function in a high percentage of patients who are disabled by
ankle instability due to unhealed or neglected tears of the lateral
ligaments.