Ankle Arthroscopy

If you have ankle issues that are refractory to conservative management, your surgeon may want to perform a diagnostic ankle arthroscopy to address the underlining pathology.

To understand this procedure, let’s first take a look at your ankle’s anatomy. Your fibula and tibia (lower leg bones), meet your talus bone at the top of the foot. Muscles and tendons surround them, and enable you to move your foot up and down. Another part of your ankle is your subtalar joint. Here, your talus is connected to your calcaneous, or heel bone. This joint allows you to move your foot inward and outward.

Finally, there are many other muscles, tendons, nerves, blood vessels, and more that make your ankle a complex joint. Therefore, identifying the source of pain can be difficult with traditional imagery.

However, with an arthroscopy, your surgeon can insert an arthroscope into your ankle for a better look.

Afterwards, you could experience some swelling, and your doctor may want you to use a splint for a short while. However, your recovery time should be considerably small compared to bigger procedures.