PATIENT-REPORTED OUTCOMES AFTER PERMISSIVE WEIGHT BEARING IN SURGICALLY TREATED TRAUMA PATIENTS WITH DISPLACED INTRA-ARTICULAR CALCANEAL FRACTURES: A MULTICENTRE, RETROSPECTIVE COHORT STUDY.

OBJECTIVE

The current aftertreatment for surgically treated patients with displaced intra-articular calcaneal fractures (DIACFs) consists of restricted weight bearing (RWB) for 8-12 weeks. This study aimed to assess whether permissive weight bearing (PWB) results in improved patient-reported outcomes (PROMs) after a minimum of 2 years follow-up, compared to RWB.

DESIGN

Multicentre, retrospective cohort study.

PATIENTS

Surgically treated patients with isolated unilateral DIACFs.

METHODS

Foot and ankle function was measured using the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society (AOFAS) Score and the Maryland Foot Score (MFS). Health-related quality of life was assessed using the Short Form-12 (SF-12) and the EuroQoL EQ-5D-5L (EQ-5D). Additionally, radiographic parameters and complications were recorded.

RESULTS

Fourteen patients followed the PWB and 18 followed the RWB protocol ( = 32). The PWB group had similar outcome scores on the AOFAS Score (83.4 vs. 71.1, = 0.13) and MFS (86.3 vs. 77.6, = 0.20) compared to the RWB group. PWB showed similar outcomes on the EQ-5D (0.86 vs. 0.80, = 0.26) scores. Radiographic parameters and complication rates were comparable for both groups.

CONCLUSION

This study suggests that PWB and RWB yield comparable PROMs in foot and ankle function without radiographic failures and similar complication rates in surgically treated patients with isolated, unilateral DIACFs.