Fractures and fracture-dislocations of the tarsometatarsal joint

Abstract

We are reporting the results in a consecutive series of forty adults in whom, between 1978 and 1984, forty-one tarsometatarsal fracture-dislocations were treated with open reduction followed by temporary internal fixation with AO screws. Ninety per cent of the patients had an intra-articular or a periarticular fracture. An anatomical or nearly anatomical reduction was achieved in all but a few patients, and there was no loss of fixation or displacement. For thirty-four patients (thirty-five injuries), the length of follow-up averaged 3.4 years, and a good or excellent functional result was obtained in all but two of the thirty in whom an anatomical reduction had been achieved. Of the six patients who had a fair or a poor result, five had an associated grade-II or grade-III open injury. The development of post-traumatic arthritis was directly related to damage to the articular surfaces or to inadequate reduction, or to both.