OBJECTIVE: To carry out a retrospective analysis of the etiopathogeny, diagnosis and therapeutic options in cases of tendinopathies of the anterior compartment of the ankle. METHOD: 13 patients underwent surgery between September 1998 and February 2009; ten men and three women. The right side was involved in twelve patients and the left in one. The averaging age was 35 years of age (15-67). The etiology was traumatic in eight patients and degenerative (non-traumatic) in five. The average time to diagnosis was 19 months (1 - 60) and the average follow-up time was 34 months (4 - 127). The diagnosis was made by anamnesis and clinical findings. Magnetic resonance imaging was performed in nine patients, for staging and planning. The surgical treatment was personalized in each case (debridement, resection of the muscle, grafting with the adjacent tendon, and free graft of the semitendinosus tendon). The following scales were used for the evaluation: 1) subjunctive satisfaction scale, 2) AOFAS and 3) Maryland. RESULTS: In relation to the subjective satisfaction scale, 12 patients were satisfied and one was dissatisfied. The average AOFAS scale was 80 points, and the average Maryland scale was 86 points. CONCLUSION: Surgical treatment is effective for restoring function. The surgical techniques must also be personalized. The free graft of the semitendinosus tendon option is effective for gaps larger than five centimeters.
Anterior compartment syndrome; Tendinopathy; Orthopaedic surgery; Tendon transfer
