Comparison of Arthroscopic Microfracture for Osteochondral Lesions of the Talus With and Without Small and Shallow Subchondral Cysts

Background: Whether arthroscopic microfracture is effective in treating cystic osteochondral lesions of the talus (OLTs) remains controversial. In this study, outcome parameters in patients with small and shallow subchondral cysts are compared to patients without cysts with the hypothesis that equivalent outcomes may be found after primary microfracture treatment. Methods: From 2018 to 2021, all 50 OLTs treated with arthroscopic microfracture in the authors’ hospital were retrospectively reviewed for eligibility. Single unilateral symptomatic lesions were included and divided into the cyst and noncyst groups, whereas kissing lesions and arthritic lesions were excluded. Numeric rating scale (NRS) scores, American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society (AOFAS) ankle-hindfoot scores, Tegner activity level scores, Foot and Ankle Ability Measure (FAAM) scores, and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging results were used to describe outcomes. Results: A total of 35 patients were included, 16 in the cyst group and 19 in the noncyst group. The patient characteristics were similar between the 2 groups ( P > .05). In the cyst group the average cysts depth was 5.0 ± 1.3 mm. After a mean follow-up duration of 36.2 ± 10.2 months, no significant differences were found between the 2 groups in NRS, AOFAS, FAAM, or Tegner score improvement ( P > .05). Three patients (19%) in the cyst group had no NRS score improvement. Conclusion: OLTs with small and shallow subchondral cysts can be treated with arthroscopic microfracture and achieve similar outcomes as noncystic lesions. A few cystic lesions may not respond to microfracture treatment. Level of Evidence: Level III, retrospective comparative study.