Features of ultrasound diagnostic syndesmotic ankle injuries in middle and older children: prospective comparative study

BACKGROUND: Diagnostics and treatment of syndesmotic ankle injuries in children is one of the important problems in pediatrics. The generally accepted examination algorithms and standards developed for adult patients do not apply to children. The ligamentous apparatus in children is much more elastic, and the tibiofibular space is smaller, which significantly complicates the diagnostic search. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to create a diagnostic algorithm for examining middle and older children with ankle joint injuries. MATERIALS AND METHODS: To create a diagnostic algorithm, whether the ultrasonographic stress test of external foot rotation in adult practice is relevant for patients with closed growth zones was investigated. Two open cohorts of middle and older children were formed. The first cohort included children aged 1114 years with a closed growth zone of the distal tibia, and the second cohort included children aged 1517 years with a closed growth zone. The inclusion criteria were the absence of injuries of the studied ankle joint and the correspondence of the body mass index to the age norm. RESULTS: The variability of the tibiofibular space during the stress test of external foot rotation in children with a closing growth zone averages 3.035 mm and in children with a closed growth zone was 2.319 mm. Data indicate a high degree of elasticity of the anterior tibialperoneal ligament in children in contrast to adults in whom this structure is more rigid. In children experiencing pain, active muscle resistance makes the test of internal rotation ineffective, and excessive elasticity of the structure in the area of a healthy joint does not give a correct comparative result for the operator. CONCLUSION: The use of a test with internal rotation for diagnosing damage to the distal tibiofibular syndesmosis in children with closing and closed growth zones is limited, and the operator must rely on other ultrasound signs of damage to this structure.