Ottawa ankle rules and subjective surgeon perception to evaluate radiograph necessity following foot and ankle sprain

Abstract

Background: Foot and ankle injuries are frequent in emergency departments. Although only a few patients with foot and ankle sprain present fractures and the fracture patterns are almost always simple, lack of fracture diagnosis can lead to poor functional outcomes.
Aim: The present study aims to evaluate the reliability of the Ottawa ankle rules and the orthopedic surgeon subjective perception to assess foot and ankle fractures after sprains.
Subjects and Methods: A cross‑sectional study was conducted from July 2012 to December 2012. Ethical approval was granted. Two hundred seventy‑four adult patients admitted to the emergency department with foot and/or ankle sprain were evaluated by an orthopedic surgeon who completed a questionnaire prior to radiographic assessment. The Ottawa ankle rules and subjective perception of foot and/or ankle fractures were evaluated on the questionnaire.
Results: Thirteen percent (36/274) patients presented fracture. Orthopedic surgeon subjective analysis showed 55.6% sensitivity, 90.1% specificity, 46.5% positive predictive value and 92.9% negative predictive value. The general orthopedic surgeon opinion accuracy was 85.4%. The Ottawa ankle rules presented 97.2% sensitivity, 7.8% specificity, 13.9% positive predictive value, 95% negative predictive value and 19.9% accuracy respectively. Weight‑bearing inability was the Ottawa ankle rule item that presented the highest reliability, 69.4% sensitivity, 61.6% specificity, 63.1% accuracy, 21.9% positive predictive value and 93% negative predictive value respectively.
Conclusion: The Ottawa ankle rules showed high reliability for deciding when to take radiographs in foot and/or ankle sprains. Weight‑bearing inability was the most important isolated item to predict fracture presence. Orthopedic surgeon subjective analysis to predict fracture possibility showed a high specificity rate, representing a confident method to exclude unnecessary radiographic exams.

Keywords: Ankle, Ankle fractures, Ankle injuries, Foot, Fractures