Arthroscopically assisted arthrodesis of the ankle was performed in
nineteen patients who were selected because they had osteoarthrosis with
minimum or no deformity of the ankle. After arthroscopic resection of the
synovial membrane, the subchondral bone, and cartilage from the tibial,
fibular, and talar articular surfaces, three percutaneous, cannulated,
cancellous screws were used for internal fixation. Of these nineteen
patients, ten had radiographic evidence of union by the second
postoperative month; five, by the third; one, by the fifth; and one, by the
sixth. Two patients had a non-union, but a successful open arthrodesis was
subsequently performed on one of these patients. At two years, the scoring
system of Mazur et al. indicated a poor result in one patient (after a
non-union), a fair result in two, a good result in four, and an excellent
result in twelve patients. Arthroscopically assisted arthrodesis of the
ankle produces good results in patients who have osteoarthrosis of the
ankle with minimum or no deformity, and the immediate postoperative
morbidity is of very short duration.