title: Clinical evaluation of a dynamic test for lateral ankle ligament laxity.
abstract: The dynamic anterior ankle tester (DAAT) has shown a good reliability in testing anterior talar translation in earlier studies. The goal of the present study was first to evaluate the reliability of the DAAT in a clinical setting and second to analyze its ability to detect increased ligament laxity. In 39 patients with unilateral chronic lateral ankle instability, the anterior talar translation of the affected and non-affected side was measured pre and postoperatively using the DAAT, Telos stress radiographs, and the manual anterior drawer test. In contrast to both other tests, the DAAT was not able to accurately detect increased ligament laxity preoperatively or decreased laxity of the affected ankle postoperatively. The DAAT showed a low sensitivity to change (the difference between the mean pre and postoperative value) and a low reliability compared to both other tests. There were no correlations between the three tests. In conclusion, the DAAT showed a low reliability in effectively testing lateral ankle ligament laxity in a clinical setting. This is in contrast to earlier evaluations.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Orthopaedic Research Center Amsterdam, Academic Medical Center, PO-Box 22660, 1100 DD, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. j.s.duvries@gmail.com
authors.forename: J S
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: de Vries
authors.forename: G M M J
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Kerkhoffs
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Blankevoort
authors.forename: C N
authors.initials: CN
authors.lastname: van Dijk
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016512:Ankle Injuries / Q000150:complications; D000843:Ankle Joint / Q000503:physiopathology*; D053587:Arthrometry, Articular / Q000295:instrumentation*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007593:Joint Instability / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D008023:Ligaments, Articular / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016059:Range of Motion, Articular; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D055815:Young Adult