Morphometric Study of Anterior and Posterior Talofibular Ligament of Ankle by MRI

Ankle sprains are most common in atheletes and in other sports like basketball, soccer, football and volleyball. Ankle sprains occur frequently during plantar flexion, adduction and inversion of foot. Injuries may be soft tissue tears or avulsion fractures. It is estimated that 15- 20 % of all sports injuries involve the ankle The ligaments of the ankle joint are medial and lateral collateral ligaments. Magnetic resonance imaging is an excellent technique for imaging the tendons and the ligaments of the ankle owing to the advantage of detailed demonstration of soft tissue structures and capability for multiplanar demonstration of the ankle ligaments and tendons, MRI has been increasingly used in the evaluation of ligamentous and tendon injuries of the ankle. Knowledge of normal anatomy of MRI appearances is essential to recognize pathological appearances. Study was conducted on 60 formalin fixed adult cadaveric lower limbs, irrespective of sex from the Department of Anatomy, Kempegowda Institute Of Medical Sciences, Bangalore. The length, Width, Thickness of Anterior talofibular ligament and Posterior Talofibular Ligament were measured. The data presented in this study are a valuable addition to the small pool of data that exists concerning the dimensions of the ligaments of the human ankle joint. These data may be of value when considering surgical repair or reconstruction of traumatized collateral ligaments, especially because any undue foreshortening of the ligaments may reduce the range of motion possible at either the ankle or subtalar joints, or both.