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Quantitative assessment of anterior talofibular ligament quality in chronic lateral ankle instability using magnetic resonance imaging T2* value

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Abstract

Objective

To determine T2* normal reference values for anterior talofibular ligament (ATFL) and to investigate the feasibility of the quantitative ATFL quality evaluation in chronic lateral ankle instability (CLAI) using T2* values.

Materials and methods

This study enrolled 15 patients with CLAI and 30 healthy volunteers. The entire ATFL T2* values from the MRI T2* mapping were measured. The prediction equation (variables: age, height, and weight) in a multiple linear regression model was used to calculate the T2* normal reference value in the healthy group. T2* ratio was defined as the ratio of the actual T2* value of the patient’s ATFL to the normal reference value for each patient. A Telos device was used to measure the talar tilt angle (TTA) from the stress radiograph.

Results

T2* values of ATFL in the healthy and CLAI groups were 10.82 ± 1.84 ms and 14.36 ± 4.30 ms, respectively, which are significantly higher in the CLAI group (P < 0.05). The prediction equation of the normal reference T2* value was [14.9 + 0.14 × age (years) − 4.7 × height (m) − 0.03 × weight (kg)] (R2 = 0.65, P < 0.0001). A significant positive correlation was found between the T2* ratio and TTA (r = 0.66, P = 0.007).

Conclusion

MRI T2* values in patients with CLAI were higher than those in healthy participants, and the T2* ratio correlated with TTA, suggesting that T2* values are promising for quantitative assessment of ATFL quality preoperatively.

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Data Availability

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author, AT, upon reasonable request.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Sapporo Medical University Hospital, South-1, West-16, Chuo-ku, Sapporo, 060-8543, Japan

    Yoshihiro Akatsuka & Rui Imamura

  2. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, South-1, West-16, Chuo-ku, Sapporo, 060-8543, Japan

    Yoshihiro Akatsuka, Atsushi Teramoto, Yasutaka Murahashi, Katsunori Takahashi, Rui Imamura & Toshihiko Yamashita

  3. Faculty of Health Sciences, Hokkaido University, North-12, West-15, Kita-ku, Sapporo, 060-0812, Japan

    Hiroyuki Takashima

  4. Second Division of Physical Therapy, Sapporo Medical University School of Health Sciences, South-1, West-16, Chuo-ku, Sapporo, 060-8543, Japan

    Kota Watanabe

Authors
  1. Yoshihiro Akatsuka
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  2. Atsushi Teramoto
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  3. Yasutaka Murahashi
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Atsushi Teramoto.

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Ethical approval for this study was obtained from the institutional review board in Sapporo Medical University Hospital (reference no: 322-250).

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Akatsuka, Y., Teramoto, A., Murahashi, Y. et al. Quantitative assessment of anterior talofibular ligament quality in chronic lateral ankle instability using magnetic resonance imaging T2* value. Skeletal Radiol 53, 733–739 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00256-023-04480-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00256-023-04480-8

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