ZHU Junkun,LAN Shuhua,HUANG Shuming, et al. Morphologic characteristics of the lateral ankle fragment: A 3-D computer tomography based study [J]. JOURNAL OF WEZHOU MEDICAL UNIVERSITY, 2016, 46(10): 730-733.
Abstract：Objective: To evaluate the morphological characteristics of the lateral malleolar fracture line and associated fragment geometry for the design of novel internal fixation. Methods: A retrospective analysis of 3-D computed tomography data of lateral ankle fracture cases from February 2012 to April 2016 was conducted. The anterior tip distance (ATD), crest tip distance (CTD), posterior tip distance (PTD), the proximal cross angle (p-CA), and distal cross angle (d-CA) were measured as morphologic assessments in the Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS). Results: Based on the recognition of the lateral ankle fracture by CT reconstruction, at a confidence interval of 95%, the fragment was described with ATD (2.97±0.03) cm, CTD (4.52±0.07) cm, PTD (3.17±0.11) cm, p-CA (103.20±1.94)°, d-CA (78.50±1.78)°. The coefficient of variation (CV) of p-CA was calculated 9.86, and the CV of d-CA arrived at 11.90. Conclusion: The anterior initiation site of lateral fracture line is relatively invariable in comparison with proximal and posterior frontier. The double facet cross angle of the fragment appears decrescent along axis of distal fibula while distal cross angle is found slightly variable, compared with proximal data. The discovery obtained from this series could be helpful in the modeling of prospective biomechanical researches and developing novel fixation.
