Purpose: Variations in the preferred conservative and operative treatment methods for ankle arthritis may be observed in the practice of orthopedic surgeons. This study is based on the Korean Foot and Ankle Society (KFAS) member survey and aims to report the current trend and changes in the management of ankle arthritis over the last few decades. Materials and Methods: A web-based questionnaire containing 24 questions was sent to all KFAS members in July 2021. The questions were mainly related to the preferred techniques and clinical experience in osteotomy, arthrodesis, and total ankle arthroplasty (TAA) for patients with ankle arthritis. Results: Sixty-three out of 550 surgeons (11.5%) responded to the survey. The responses to 6 out of the total of 24 questions (25.0%) achieved the levels needed to reflect a tendency. Answers that showed a tendency were related to the following: a surgical approach for arthrodesis (anterior approach), use of auto-bone graft for arthrodesis (iliac bone), a nonunion rate of more than 10% following arthrodesis, main reason related to unsatisfactory results after arthrodesis (nonunion or delayed union), the main reason to change total ankle prosthesis (unstable supply of prosthesis), the unusualness of revision TAA and conversion of fusion to TAA. Diversity was found in several aspects of treatment (degree of experience and satisfaction in supramalleolar osteotomy, fixation method for arthrodesis, preferred TAA prosthesis and longevity, degree of experinece, annual number of TAA operation. Conclusion: This study proposes updated information with regard to the current trends in the management of ankle arthritis in Korea. Both consensus and variations in the approach to patients with ankle arthritis were identified through this survey. With an increasing preference for TAA, the need for the development of a prosthesis optimized for Koreans and a stable supply of prostheses were the suggestions made by the study.

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate biological ligament healing quantitatively after suture-tape augmentation for chronic lateral ankle instability. Materials and Methods: Thirty-two patients underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at a minimum of 2 years after lateral ligament augmentation using suture-tape. Signal/noise ratios (SNRs) and widths of anterior talofibular ligaments (ATFLs) were measured on preoperative and postoperative MRI by three researchers. ATFL biological healing degrees were analyzed using changes in SNRs and widths of ATFLs and by comparing these metrics with those of normal contralateral ankles. Clinical evaluations were performed using foot and ankle outcome scores (FAOSs), Foot and Ankle Ability Measure (FAAM) scores, and ankle stress radiographs. Results: Mean FAOS and FAAM scores improved significantly from 62.4 to 93.6 and 58.3 to 92.3, respectively, at final follow-up (p<0.001). Mean SNRs and ATFL widths improved insignificantly from 8.49 to 8.21 and 2.07 to 2.15 mm, respectively, at final follow-up (p=0.424, p=0.718). Significant differences in mean SNRs and ATFL widths were found between ipsilateral and contralateral sides (p<0.001, p=0.002). Spearman's correlation analysis revealed no significant association between clinical outcomes and degrees of biological healing of ATFLs based on MRI findings. Conclusion: Despite improvements in clinical outcome measures, the effects of suture-tape augmentation for chronic lateral ankle instability on biological ligament healing were insignificant. In addition, no significant correlation was found between clinical outcomes and degrees of biological healing of ATFLs.

Purpose: This study examined whether there are seasonal variations in the number of plantar fasciitis cases from the database of the Korean Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service and an internet search of the volume data related to plantar fasciitis and whether there are correlations between variations. Materials and Methods: The number of plantar fasciitis cases per month was acquired from the Korean Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service from January 2016 to December 2019. The monthly internet relative search volumes for the keywords "plantar fasciitis" and "heel pain" were collected during the same period from DataLab, an internet search query trend service provided by the Korean portal website, Naver. Cosinor analysis was performed to confirm the seasonality of the monthly number of cases and relative search volumes, and Pearson and Spearman correlation analysis was conducted to assess the correlation between them. Results: The number of cases with plantar fasciitis and the relative search volume for the keywords "plantar fasciitis" and "heel pain" all showed significant seasonality (p<0.001), with the highest in the summer and the lowest in the winter. The number of cases with plantar fasciitis was correlated significantly with the relative search volumes of the keywords "plantar fasciitis" (r=0.632; p<0.001) and "heel pain" (r=0.791; p<0.001), respectively. Conclusion: Both the number of cases with plantar fasciitis and the internet search data for related keywords showed seasonality, which was the highest in summer. The number of cases showed a significant correlation with the internet search data for the seasonality of plantar fasciitis. Internet big data could be a complementary resource for researching and monitoring plantar fasciitis.

Purpose: This paper reports the surgical treatment results of open calcaneal fractures performed at the author's clinics focusing on open calcaneal fractures to help understand the appropriate treatment and realistic outcomes. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted on 22 cases out of 30 patients who visited the hospital from February 2009 to December 2019 and were followed up for more than one year. In open fractures, the fracture was classified using the Gustilo-Anderson classification and was evaluated using the soft tissue status at the time of visit. Intra-articular calcaneal fractures were classified using Sanders classification. The radiological parameters were measured for the Böhler angle, Gissane angle, calcaneal length, height, and width before and after surgery, and at the last follow-up. The clinical outcomes were evaluated using the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) ankle-hindfoot scale and investigated complications. In addition, statistical analysis of the incidence and associated factors of posttraumatic arthritis was conducted. Results: In all cases, the surgical treatment was performed by minimally invasive surgery. The AOFAS ankle-hindfoot scale conducted for a clinical evaluation of the final follow-up was averaged 72.5 points. In the classification of open fractures, the Gustilo-Anderson classification type IIIA was the most common, and the Sanders type III was the most common. Of the 22 cases after surgery, 15 cases had complications, 11 cases had posttraumatic arthritis, eight cases had an infection, and 4 cases had both complications. Only the Sanders classification showed a statistically significant correlation with the incidence of posttraumatic osteoarthritis (p-value 0.032). Conclusion: In treating open calcaneal fractures, internal fixation by a minimally invasive approach showed relatively satisfactory results. However, follow-up research will be needed, including the results of a long-term follow-up through a large number of cases and comparative studies with other surgical methods.

More than 120 surgical methods for the correction of hallux valgus deformities have been reported. For the correction of moderate to severe hallux valgus deformities with aesthetic demands, minimally invasive surgery at the proximal area can be considered. This paper reports a case of moderate hallux valgus deformity treated by a minimally invasive proximal transverse metatarsal osteotomy followed by intramedullary plate fixation.

A checkrein deformity can occur after a distal tibiofibular fracture. Usually, a checkrein deformity due to a dysfunction of the extensor hallucis longus muscle is rarer than that of the flexor hallucis longus. Only a few related studies have been reported. The authors encountered an extensor hallucis longus checkrein deformity due to extensor retinaculum syndrome while managing a triplane fracture. In magnetic resonance imaging, an increase in the heterogeneous signal was observed on the T2-weighted images suggesting muscle necrosis or ischemic changes in a part of the extensor hallucis muscle. Postoperative great toe motor weakness, unintentional movement, sensory changes, and weakness improved spontaneously during the follow-up.