Functional outcomes of 26 patients surgically treated talus fracture

Aims: This study evaluates whether trauma mechanisms, fracture types, and surgical treatment choices in cases of operatively treated talus fractures have an effect on the clinical outcomes of patients. Methods: Twenty-six patients over the age of 18 who were surgically treated between 2019 and 2022 were included in the study. The collected data included age at the time of injury, gender, trauma characteristics (affected side, trauma mechanism, associated injuries), treatment characteristics (surgical delay, operation time, length of hospital stay), rates and types of revision surgery, and last follow-up date. The American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (AOFAS) Ankle-Hindfoot Score and a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) were used to measure patient-reported outcomes. Results: The mean age of the cohort was 33.6±11.8 years and it included 8 women (30.7%) and 18 men (69.2%). The most common trauma mechanisms were falls from a height (10 patients) and injuries sustained during traffic accidents (6 patients). The most common surgery performed was cannulated screw osteosynthesis (20 patients, 76.9%), followed by plate osteosynthesis (5 patients, 19.2%) and K-wire and screw osteosynthesis (1 patient, 3.9%). The mean VAS score was 1.9±2.1 (range: 0-8) and the mean AOFAS score was 67.2±25.5 (range: 17-97). Conclusion: This study revealed that the selected surgical method, fracture type, and trauma mechanism did not have significant effects on patient-reported functional outcomes. These results suggest that, although talus fractures are rare, the need for surgical intervention and the occurrence of postoperative complications make these fractures a significant type of trauma.