{"title":"Association of Baxter's Neuropathy and Fatty Infiltration of the Abductor Digiti Minimi Muscle on Magnetic Resonance Imaging: A Systematic Review.","authors":"John S C Chen, Mandy Abbott, Karl B Landorf","doi":"10.1002/jfa2.70075","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Fatty infiltration-or fatty atrophy-of the abductor digiti minimi (ADM) muscle of the foot on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has been attributed to entrapment of the first branch of the lateral plantar nerve (i.e., Baxter's neuropathy), a condition associated with plantar heel pain (PHP). The aim of this study was to investigate the evidence relating to the association between fatty infiltration of ADM and Baxter's neuropathy.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This systematic review conducted searches in MEDLINE, CINAHL, SPORTDiscus, Embase and the Cochrane Library from 20<sup>th</sup> June 2023 to 19<sup>th</sup> of March 2024. Peer-reviewed articles of retrospective, cross-sectional observational, or cohort studies written in English that investigated the prevalence or frequency of fatty infiltration of ADM on MRI in adult participants were included. Study quality and risk of bias were assessed using the National Institutes of Health quality assessment tool for observational cohort and cross-sectional studies.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Four studies (1052 participants) were identified and included in the review. Two studies were retrospective studies and two studies were cross-sectional observational studies. Only one study was rated 'good' on quality assessment. The reported prevalence of fatty infiltration of ADM on MRI was reported to be between 4% and 11% in the general population. Prevalence was also reported to be similar in people with and without generalised foot pain (approximately 8% and 6%, respectively). No studies reported prevalence in specific populations with PHP or with Baxter's neuropathy.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The association between fatty infiltration of ADM on MRI and entrapment of the first branch of the lateral plantar nerve as part of PHP still remains unknown due to the lack of robust evidence. Additional high-quality studies investigating the association between PHP and fatty infiltration of ADM on MRI would be worthwhile to improve our understanding of the diagnostic value of MRI for this condition, which may aid decision-making for the treatment of PHP, particularly surgical treatment of Baxter's neuropathy.</p>","PeriodicalId":49164,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Foot and Ankle Research","volume":"18 3","pages":"e70075"},"PeriodicalIF":2.2000,"publicationDate":"2025-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12367558/pdf/","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of Foot and Ankle Research","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1002/jfa2.70075","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"ORTHOPEDICS","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Background: Fatty infiltration-or fatty atrophy-of the abductor digiti minimi (ADM) muscle of the foot on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has been attributed to entrapment of the first branch of the lateral plantar nerve (i.e., Baxter's neuropathy), a condition associated with plantar heel pain (PHP). The aim of this study was to investigate the evidence relating to the association between fatty infiltration of ADM and Baxter's neuropathy.
Methods: This systematic review conducted searches in MEDLINE, CINAHL, SPORTDiscus, Embase and the Cochrane Library from 20th June 2023 to 19th of March 2024. Peer-reviewed articles of retrospective, cross-sectional observational, or cohort studies written in English that investigated the prevalence or frequency of fatty infiltration of ADM on MRI in adult participants were included. Study quality and risk of bias were assessed using the National Institutes of Health quality assessment tool for observational cohort and cross-sectional studies.
Results: Four studies (1052 participants) were identified and included in the review. Two studies were retrospective studies and two studies were cross-sectional observational studies. Only one study was rated 'good' on quality assessment. The reported prevalence of fatty infiltration of ADM on MRI was reported to be between 4% and 11% in the general population. Prevalence was also reported to be similar in people with and without generalised foot pain (approximately 8% and 6%, respectively). No studies reported prevalence in specific populations with PHP or with Baxter's neuropathy.
Conclusion: The association between fatty infiltration of ADM on MRI and entrapment of the first branch of the lateral plantar nerve as part of PHP still remains unknown due to the lack of robust evidence. Additional high-quality studies investigating the association between PHP and fatty infiltration of ADM on MRI would be worthwhile to improve our understanding of the diagnostic value of MRI for this condition, which may aid decision-making for the treatment of PHP, particularly surgical treatment of Baxter's neuropathy.
期刊介绍:
Journal of Foot and Ankle Research, the official journal of the Australian Podiatry Association and The College of Podiatry (UK), is an open access journal that encompasses all aspects of policy, organisation, delivery and clinical practice related to the assessment, diagnosis, prevention and management of foot and ankle disorders.
Journal of Foot and Ankle Research covers a wide range of clinical subject areas, including diabetology, paediatrics, sports medicine, gerontology and geriatrics, foot surgery, physical therapy, dermatology, wound management, radiology, biomechanics and bioengineering, orthotics and prosthetics, as well the broad areas of epidemiology, policy, organisation and delivery of services related to foot and ankle care.
The journal encourages submissions from all health professionals who manage lower limb conditions, including podiatrists, nurses, physical therapists and physiotherapists, orthopaedists, manual therapists, medical specialists and general medical practitioners, as well as health service researchers concerned with foot and ankle care.
The Australian Podiatry Association and the College of Podiatry (UK) have reserve funds to cover the article-processing charge for manuscripts submitted by its members. Society members can email the appropriate contact at Australian Podiatry Association or The College of Podiatry to obtain the corresponding code to enter on submission.