REVIEW article
Front. Surg.
Sec. Orthopedic Surgery
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fsurg.2025.1695657
Arthroscopic-Assisted Reduction and Fixation of Calcaneal Fractures Using Sustentaculum Tali and Medial Wall Screws
Provisionally accepted
- 安徽医科大学第二附属医院, 安徽合肥, China
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Abstract Objective: This study retrospectively analyzed the clinical efficacy and safety of arthroscopy-assisted reduction and internal fixation in the treatment of displaced intra-articular fractures of the calcaneus (Sanders type II and III). Methods: Conducted at The Second Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, this retrospective study analyzed 60 consecutive patients with displaced intra-articular calcaneal fractures (DIACFs) admitted between January 2021 and February 2023. All patients underwent arthroscopically-assisted minimally invasive reduction and fixation with sustentaculum tali screws plus medial wall support screw. Outcomes were tracked preoperatively, postoperatively, and at final follow-up, encompassing radiographic metrics (Böhler angle, Gissane angle, calcaneal width, calcaneal height) and clinical scores (AOFAS Ankle-Hindfoot Scale, VAS). Pre-to-postoperative changes were analyzed using paired t-tests (normal distribution) or Wilcoxon signed-rank tests (non-normal distribution), with P < 0.05 considered significant. Results: All 60 patients completed a minimum 12-month postoperative follow-up. Fracture union was achieved in all cases with no loss to follow-up. Postoperative CT and X-ray imaging confirmed: satisfactory calcaneal morphological restoration, maintained reduction without significant loss between postoperative and final measurements (P > 0.05). At the end of the postoperative follow-up, The major complication rate was 0/60 cases (95% upper limit ≈ 4.9%); AOFAS score was 88.2±3.9, with a 95% CI of 87.2–89.2; VAS score was 0.23±0.57, with a 95% CI of 0.08–0.38. Conclusion: Arthroscopically assisted reduction and internal fixation using calcanar screws and medial wall support screws is a feasible and effective surgical strategy for the treatment of Sanders type II and type III intra-articular calcaneal fractures.
Keywords: Calcaneal fractures, Arthroscopy, Minimally invasive internal fixation, Sustentaculum Tali Screw, Medial Buttress Screw, Böhler angle
Received: 30 Aug 2025; Accepted: 06 Oct 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Tang, Zhang, Zhu, Huai, Wang, Zhan and Jing. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Junfeng Zhan, jfzpaper@163.com
Juehua Jing, jjjhhu@sina.com
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