Abstract
Isolated medial malleolar fractures are a less common presentation of an ankle fracture.
Treatment is not universally accepted, although many have agreed that any displacement
warrants anatomic reduction and fixation. We present a case of an isolated, comminuted
medial malleolar fracture that was displaced secondary to entrapment of the posterior
tibial tendon between the fracture fragments requiring surgical intervention. The
patient was treated with prompt open reduction and internal fixation and had an excellent
functional outcome at 1 year. When open reduction and internal fixation of the medial
malleolus is indicated, a thorough exploration of the zone of injury is required to
identify and adequately address any surrounding pathologic features beyond just the
disrupted bony anatomy. To the best of our knowledge, this specific injury has never
been previously reported and emphasizes the importance of understanding the local
anatomy and how restoration of the distorted anatomy is vital to optimize patient
function.
Level of Clinical Evidence
Keywords
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: July 08, 2017
Footnotes
Financial Disclosure: None reported.
Conflict of Interest: None reported.
Identification
Copyright
© 2017 by the American College of Foot and Ankle Surgeons. All rights reserved.