Arthroscopic vs open ankle arthrodesis: A prospective case series with seven years follow-up

Table 1 Demographic data

Variable	Group A (open) n = 11	Group B (arthroscopic) n = 12	P
Average age ± SD	67.0 ± 2.6	64.6 ± 1.9	0.162
Sex (M/F)	8/3	5/7	0.219
BMI ± SD	23.6 ± 1.0	23.8 ± 1.0	0.347
Dominant side (R/L)	8/3	9/3	0.952
Affected side (R/L)	7/4	5/7	0.390
Hospital stay (d) ± SD	5.4 ± 0.8	3.6 ± 0.5	0.001b
Follow-up (yr) ± SD	7.6 ± 1.1	7.3 ± 1.1	0.364
Device (screws/IOFIX)	7/4	7/5	0.390

^bP < 0.05.

Boldface indicates statistical significance. BMI: Body mass index.

Table 2 Clinical outcomes

Variable	Group A (open) n = 11	Group B (arthroscopic) n = 12	P
AOFAS ± SD
Pre-operative	33.6 ± 11.7	32.1 ± 4.1	0.411
Six months	62.2 ± 3.2	78.5 ± 3.9	0.00001b
Final follow-up	79.3 ± 3.6	81.3 ± 3.7	0.462
FAS ± SD
Pre-operative	44.1 ± 6.9	48.8 ± 2.9	0.244
Six months	61.1 ± 6.1	70.3 ± 2.8	0.015b
Final follow-up	74.7 ± 2.7	75.8 ± 2.7	0.593
Pain VAS ± SD
Pre-operative	4.3 ± 0.7	4.3 ± 0.6	0.903
Six months	1.4 ± 0.4	0.9 ± 0.4	0.162
Final follow-up	0.8 ± 0.6	0.6 ± 0.4	0.507
Bone fusion (wk) ± SD	15.1 ± 1.1	11.2 ± 0.7	0.00001b
Complications	1 nonunion, 2 wound dehiscence	1 screws removed	0.459

^bP < 0.05.

Boldface indicates statistical significance. AOFAS: American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle score; FAS: Freiburg Ankle score; VAS: Visual analogue scale.