Treatment of Avascular Necrosis of the Talus with Vascularized Fibular Graft

혈관부착 비골이식술을 이용한 거골 무혈성 괴사의 치료

Nonunion and avascular necrosis are well-recognized complications of severe ankle injury especially aftrer talar neck fracture. The treatment of avascular necrosis is controversial and methods of treatment are limited. Many modalities have been introduced for the treatment of avascular necrosis of talus. The prolonged non-weight bearing for 2~3 years is not practical but also is occasionally complicated by late segmental collapse. Operative treatment includes tibiotalar arthrodesis and talectomy with tibiocalcaneal arthrodesis, but arthrodesis in patients with talar avascular necrosis is technically demanding and cause stiff, immobile foot and relatively high failure rate was reported. It is desirable to preserve their original joint if possible. Vascularized fibular grafting has been reported as a joint preserving treatment option for osteonecrosis of the hip but has not been described for the ankle. The authors applied free vascularized fibular grafts for 3 cases of avascular necrosis of talus. We observed evidences of revascularization of necrotic talar body and progression of fracture healing and obtained satisfactory results at mean 8 months of follow-up. Vascularized fibular grafting is one of the better alternatives for treating avascular necrosis of talus. It is expected that vascularized fibular grafting can prevent the necrotic talar dome from progressing to collapse and promote directly restored vascularization and new bone formation.