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From the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons

Lateral Ligament Instability of the Ankle

by James Sferra, MD; Ahmed G. El Said, MD

Lateral ligament instability of the ankle can be classified as either chronic or acute. Acute ankle sprain is only rarely managed surgically; however, many options exist for surgical management of chronic ankle instability that is not able to be managed by nonsurgical treatment. In addition to coverage of the pathophysiology, diagnosis, and nonsurgical management of lateral ligament instability of the ankle, this OKO topic covers, in depth, the following three surgical procedures: Colville anatomic reconstruction, modified Brostrom-Gould procedure, and modified Brostrom-Evans procedure.

Keywords: recurrent ankle instability, chronic ankle sprain, chronic ankle instability, incidence, etiology, mechanism of injury, classification, diagnosis, patient history, physical examination, imaging, radiography, differential diagnosis, management, surgical treatment, nonsurgical treatment, surgical techniques, Colville anatomic reconstruction, modified Brostrom-Gould procedure, modified Brostrom-Evans procedure, indications, contraindications, outcomes

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