Doctors perform rare ankle surgery on budding footballer

A budding footballer, suffering from posterior ankle injury, is all set to return to active sports after undergoing a rare ankle arthroscopic surgery at a city hospital here.
19-year-old Shubham's trouble began when he started experiencing pain in the posterior of his ankle, which was aggravated by running and kicking football. The condition persisted for almost a year during which he visited many orthopedic surgeons in the city without any relief.
At Indian Spinal Injuries Centre (ISIC), a team of orthopedic and sports medicine specialists examined him and he was finally diagnosed with posterior ankle impingement syndrome.
"Pain in the back side of ankle in sports professionals like footballers, horizontal distance jumpers and dancers can be due to many causes and poses a diagnostic challenge. Such pain markedly affects the performance of the player and if not addressed properly could even destroy a career," Dr Maninder Shah Singh, Foot and Ankle Specialist at ISIC said.

The healing regimen began with a trial of conservative
treatment for three months which included use of physiotherapy modalities, oral anti-inflammatory medications and exercises, but the pain used to recur with sprinting and kicking football.

The patient was then operated on January 12.
Traditionally, ankle arthroscopy is performed using anterior (frontal) portals with the patient in the supine position (lying face up). However, posterior (back side) arthoscopy has advantages especially for lesions situated at the back of the ankle.
"This is a rarely performed surgery requiring special training and skills which is available in very few centres in India. This surgery is done using two skin cuts less than 1 cm each at the back of the ankle. First a camera is introduced through the cut and then specialised instruments are introduced to treat the problem.

"Introducing arthroscopic equipment into the posterior aspect of the ankle saves gross injury to the neurovascular structures of the ankle and this result in better recovery as compared to open surgery," Singh said.
Post-surgery, Shubham started walking on the second day itself and was discharged immediately.
Rehabilitation began with the help of physiotherapists of the sports rehab team of ISIC Arthroscopy and Sports Injury Department.
"It is notable that post-surgery rehab is very crucial to a successful recovery not just in cases of sportspersons but also in general orthopedic surgeries.
"One year ago, I had almost given up hope of being able to revive my career when multiple consultations across Delhi failed to provide any relief to me. However, after the surgery I have started exercising and warming up and I am hopeful that I will hit field very soon back to my kicking ways," a delighted Shubham said.