Arthroscopic Treatment of Bone Cyst of Anterior Half of the Talar Body

Abstract

Large talar bone cyst can cause pathologic fracture and damage to the articular cartilage, resulting in persistent swelling and pain of the subtalar joint and ankle joint. For a symptomatic cyst not responding to conservative treatment, surgery can be considered. Open debridement and bone grafting frequently require extensive soft-tissue dissection or even different types of malleolar osteotomy for proper access to the lesion. Arthroscopic treatment of talar bone cyst is a feasible alternative minimally invasive approach to reduce surgical trauma and eliminate the need for osteotomy. Bone cyst of the anterior part of the talar body can be debrided via a bone window of the talar neck, which is normally devoid of cartilage. The purpose of this Technical Note is to describe the technique of arthroscopic treatment of bone cyst of anterior half of the talar body. This minimally invasive approach does not disrupt the normal articular cartilage of the talar dome.