Intra-articular fracture is a very common fracture. The only method to treat these fractures is surgery with plate and screws followed by rehabilitation. Even though the surgeons do their best to restore the anatomy, up to 40 percent of the patients develop osteoarthritis after 10 years. Previous research has shown that immediately after fracture in the joint, the body starts an inflammatory response and activates a series of biomarkers inside the joint space. Some of these biomarkers are believed to break down the cartilage resulting in development of osteoarthritis, despite surgical treatment. Currently it is still unknown, which biomarkers are activated in the joint space, and how we can stop their deleterious action in order to prevent cartilage degradation. The purpose of this project is to identify the biomarkers in the joint space after an intra-articular ankle fracture and to evaluate how these biomarkers affect the short- and mid-terms clinical outcomes. As secondary outcomes we evaluate how fracture classification and fracture reduction affect clinical outcomes and physical activity after surgery.
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Concentration of cytokines in fracture ankle versus non-fracture ankle
Timeframe: During surgery
Cytokines (identified in primary outcome 1) correlation with clinical outcomes (AOFAS)
Timeframe: 12 months after surgery