OBJECTIVETo explore clinical outcomes of retrograde interlocked intramedullary nailing with tibia bone graft fusion in treating end-stage ankle arthritis.

METHODSFrom November 2014 to April 2016, 22 patients with end-stage ankle arthritis were treated with retrograde interlocked intramedullary nailing with tibia bone graft fusion, including 9 males and 13 females aged from 30 to 65 years old with an average of 48.5 years old. Seven patients had obvious varus deformity, and other 15 patients' appearance were normal. Operative time, blood loss, fracture healing time and complications were observed and compared, AOFAS and VAS score were applied for evaluate ankle joint function and pain degree before operation and 9 months after operation.

RESULTSAll patients were followed up from 12 to 24 months with an average of 18.6 months. The incision were healed at stage I , and no complications occurred. Operative time ranged from 80 to 120 min with an average of 90 min;blood loss ranged from 15 to 50 ml with an average of 30 ml;fracture healing time was from 10 to 18 weeks with an average of 14 weeks. AOFAS score at 9 months after operation was 88.00±3.45, while 54.82±2.98 before operation, and there was statistical significance; 8 cases obtained excellent results, 12 good and 2 moderate. There was significant difference in VAS score between preoperative(3.96±1.27) and 9 months after operation(9.37±0.55).

CONCLUSIONSRetrograde interlocked intramedullary nailing with tibia bone graft fusion for the treatment of end-stage ankle arthritis has advantages of stable fixation, less trauma, less blood loss, bone union and rapid recovery of function, and could relieve pain obviously.