Postoperative Complications Following Repair of Acute Achilles Tendon Rupture

Area of Science:

• Orthopedic Surgery
• Trauma Surgery
• Sports Medicine

Background:

• Controversy exists regarding optimal treatment for acute Achilles tendon ruptures.
• Identifying risk factors for postoperative complications is crucial for surgical decision-making.

Purpose of the Study:

• To determine the incidence of postoperative complications following operative Achilles tendon repair.
• To identify specific risk factors associated with these complications.
• To compare complication rates between open and minimally invasive surgical (MIS) approaches.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective review of 615 adult patients undergoing operative Achilles tendon repair.
• Data collected included demographics, comorbidities, injury details, and surgical approach.
• Complications assessed: wound healing, rerupture, hematoma, nerve injury, DVT, PE.

Main Results:

• 11.7% of patients experienced postoperative complications.
• Independent risk factors identified: increasing age (OR 1.04) and active tobacco use (OR 3.20).
• No significant difference in overall complication rates between open (11.6%) and MIS (13.2%) repair.

Conclusions:

• Operative Achilles tendon repair is associated with an 11.7% complication rate.
• Advancing age and tobacco use are significant independent risk factors for complications.
• Subspecialty training may influence outcomes, but MIS does not demonstrate a clear advantage over open repair in reducing complications.