

Anterior Ankle impingement is a condition involving synovial hypertrophy, cartilage proliferation, scar tissue formation, calcification, and or osteophyte formation in the anterolateral gutter. It’s a result of trauma, specifically dorsiflexion trauma, ankle inversion trauma, or repetitive stress. Most patients report a history of these traumas and report chronic anterolateral ankle pain and or limited dorsiflexion.
Liu et al. (1997) wondered whether there were any findings from patient history and physical examination that could aid in the non-invasive diagnosis of ankle impingement.
Their retrospective analysis of 22 patient cases revealed a sensitivity of 94% and specificity of 75% for 5 out of 6 positive findings. When interpreting these findings, the big confidence intervals and overall study design result in only moderate clinical value.
The six findings you should look out for according to the authors are:
Orthopedic tests to help your diagnosis of ankle impingement are: