[Fibular ligament lesions-reliable ultrasound diagnostics : Tricks and tips]

In 2020 a total of 126 patients attended the practice with distortion trauma of the ankle. Based on a thorough clinical and ultrasound examination 25 ligamentous injuries of the anterior talofibular ligament (ATFL, 9.8%), 8 osseous ligament avulsions (6.3%), 7 injuries of the lateral calcaneocuboid ligament (CC ligament, 5.6%), 5 lesions of the calcaneofibular ligament (CFL) each combined with ATFL injuries (3.9%) and 1 syndesmosis injury (0.6%) were recorded. This didactic article presents a comprehensible ultrasound examination course in an instructive manner from the clinical practice. Identification of osseous and ligamentous landmarks is often difficult clinically and even in an anatomical preparation but it can easily be done using ultrasound. Hemarthrosis of the ankle has a high predictive value with respect to an associated ligament tear and is easily detectable by ultrasound. Injuries of the ATFL, the anterior syndesmosis and damage to the lateral malleolar epiphysis can easily be clearly distinguished sonographically. A positive decompression test confirms the distal avulsion of the ATFL. Sonographic stability testing of the AFTL can be carried out immediately after the clinical examination in the same position and visualized on the monitor. The talofibular advance can be measured on the monitor. Instability of the anterior syndesmosis can be visually demonstrated on the monitor using the sonographic Frick test. A final ultrasound control on the monitor confirms the structural healing and the re-establishment of ligamentous stability.