Long-Term Outcomes After Total Ankle Arthroplasty: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Category: Ankle Arthritis; Ankle Introduction/Purpose: There is a paucity of aggregate literature reporting on long-term patient-reported outcomes (PROs) and implant failure after total ankle arthroplasty (TAA). The purpose of this study is to report an aggregate of literature on minimum 10-year patient-reported outcomes after total ankle arthroplasty. Methods: A systematic review on minimum 10-year PROs of TAA was conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines. Pubmed, Scopus, and Cochrane Trials were queried on December 28th, 2022, with the following keywords: (ankle) AND (replacement or arthroplasty) AND (long-term or 10-year). Primary research articles were included if they reported minimum 10-year PROs for patients undergoing primary TAA and written in English. Forest plots with heterogeneity were created for PROs reported preoperatively and postoperatively in three or more studies. Long-term was defined as minimum 10-year follow-up. Survivorship was defined by implant failure which was determined uniquely by each study. Results: Six studies met the inclusion criteria with all 6 studies being level IV. A total of 277 ankles with average age range of 54-60.9 years were included in the study with follow up ranging from 10 to 24 years. The primary indication for total ankle replacement was osteoarthritis. Two of the six studies reported significant improvement in PROs following surgery. The remaining 4 studies also demonstrated improvement in PRO however no p values were reported. A forest plot was generated for the AOFAS score and I2 of 67% was calculated. Survivorship at a minimum of 10 year follow up ranged from 66-94.4%. Average time to implant failure ranged from 54.7-166 months. Conclusion: Patients undergoing primary TAA demonstrated improved outcomes at minimum 10-year follow-up. However, they demonstrated variable rates of survivorship ranging from 66-94.4% with average time to implant failure ranging from 54.7 – 166 months.