Enduring Outcomes of Star Ankle Replacement in Moderate to SevereCoronal Deformities: A Long- Term Perspective

Background: Ankle osteoarthritis (OA) with a coronal plane deformity makes surgery very difficult. In the past,total ankle replacement (TAR) was not done in these circumstances because people were worried about fixing thealignment and the implant's long-term success. However, improvements in surgical methods and implant design,especially with the STAR prosthesis, have made TAR possible for more people, even those with moderate tosevere deformity.Aim and Objective: The goal of this study was to look at the long-term functional and radiological results ofSTAR complete ankle replacement in people with moderate to severe coronal plane abnormalities, as well as therates of implant survival and complications.Materials and Methods: The research took the form of an observational study that monitored patients at theDepartment of Orthopaedics in Government Medical College and Hospital, Purnea, Bihar,India for 12 months, 72patients with end-stage ankle OA and varus or valgus deformities of 10° or more had STAR complete anklereplacement surgery. We used AOFAS Ankle-Hindfoot scores, FAAM scores, and VAS pain levels to measurehow well things worked. At least five years of follow-up were used to look at how well the radiographic alignmentwas maintained and how long the implant lasted.Results: The average AOFAS score increased from 43.7 ± 9.4 before surgery to 84.9 ± 8.1 at the last follow-up.All the scores went up: FAAM scores went from 45.6 ± 11.2 to 82.7 ± 9.6, and VAS pain levels went down from7.6 ± 1.3 to 2.1 ± 1.2 (p < 0.001 for all). 91.7% of patients kept their coronal alignment. The Kaplan-Meier survivalanalysis showed that 97.2% of implants survived after five years and 91.5% after eight years. There were notmany complications or revisions overall.Conclusion: When done with careful surgical planning and the right correction of deformity, STAR total anklereplacement gives patients with moderate to severe coronal plane deformities excellent long-term functionaloutcomes, long-lasting alignment correction, and a high rate of implant survival. It is a reliable way to preservemotion instead of ankle arthrodesis for these difficult patients.