Sports, ankle osteoarthritis, and total ankle arthroplasty

Abstract

Ankle osteoarthritis (OA) is common among young and active people. The majority of the affected population are physiologically young and used to be sports active, which make their expectations of the treatment higher than hip and knee OA population. Non-surgical interventions sometimes can be a short-term solution, but surgical procedures such as Total Ankle Arthroplasty (TAA) are considered in end-stage OA. Until recently, sports and exercise restriction has been widely recommended by surgeons for patients with ankle OA, to avoid increasing pain or further joint damage. The published studies showed that sports activities can be used as a treatment or at least as an adjunct in the management plan. Patients with TAA are classically advised to avoid sports participation for fear of implant failure. However, surprisingly some articles reported a good influence of sports activity on the functional TAA outcome. Up to date, guidelines and recommendations for intensity and types of sports to be practiced by TAA patients are scanty. In this article, sports activities in relation to Ankle OA and TAA will be comprehensively discussed.