Leg anterior compartment syndrome following ankle arthroscopy after Maisonneuve fracture

Abstract

We report a case of leg anterior compartment syndrome following ankle arthroscopy after Maisonneuve fracture. A 21-year-old football player sprained his left ankle. Plain radiography of his left ankle showed a lateral dislocation of the talus without obvious fractures. Plain radiography of his left lower extremity showed a spiral fracture of the proximal fibula approximately one third distal to the fibular head. According to these findings, we diagnosed this fracture as a Maisonneuve fracture and treated it by ankle arthroscopy and drilling of the talar osteochondral injury followed by arthroscopic ankle visualization during syndesmosis screw fixation. Six hours after surgery, the patient complained of pain in the lower extremity. We diagnosed acute compartment syndrome and performed emergent fasciotomy. One year after surgery, he was able to fully participate in athletic activities. We consider ankle arthroscopy to be available for the treatment of ankle fracture with the suspected complication of an intra-articular disorder such as a Maisonneuve fracture. However, with this type of ankle fracture, there is a higher potential risk of acute compartment syndrome developing than with other types of ankle fractures. Therefore we suggest that surgeons guard against this complication.