FLEXOR HALLUCIS LONGUS TENOLYSIS/TENOSYNOVECTOMY IN DANCERS

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to report on a series of dancers who had undergone Flexor Hallucis Longus (FHL) tenolysis/tenosynovectomy after having failed conservative management. Methods: Institutional human subjects committee approval was obtained prior to initiating this study. This stu...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine
Main Authors: Barchi, Elizabeth I., Rose, Donald, Swensen, Stephanie, Espiritu-McKay, Tracy
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: SAGE Publications 2019
Subjects:
SCAR
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/2325967119s00174
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/2325967119S00174
Description
Summary:Purpose: The purpose of this study was to report on a series of dancers who had undergone Flexor Hallucis Longus (FHL) tenolysis/tenosynovectomy after having failed conservative management. Methods: Institutional human subjects committee approval was obtained prior to initiating this study. This study is a retrospective case series of 58 dancers and 63 ankles who underwent FHL tenolysis/tenosynovectomy via an open posteromedial approach by a single surgeon between 1993-2017. All patients were interviewed and charts reviewed retrospectively. Collected variables included: pre-operative and post-operative pain levels, time to return to dance, and subjective satisfaction with the procedure. Average age, primary dance form, level of dance were determined. Results: Average pre-operative pain level decreased significantly post-operatively. Average time to return to dance was 7.1 weeks. There was a 98% return to dance at some level while 97% of patients returned to dance symptom-free. There were no neurovascular or other major complications. Minor complications included superficial wound infection (3.1%) and hypertrophic scar (4.8%). Over 97% of dancers considered the procedure a success and 98% of dancers would repeat the procedure. Conclusions: This is one of the largest series reported of isolated FHL tenolysis/tenosynovectomy in dancers who have failed non-operative management. Satisfactory pain relief and return to dance with a low complication rate may be expected from this surgical procedure. The results of this study can be used to help dancers and their providers make informed decisions about treatment in isolated FHL tendinitis.

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