Fig. 3

Preoperative X-ray of a 51-year-old female showed a van Dijk stage II osteoarthritis of the right ankle joint; the preoperative ankle joint space distance was 2.3 mm (a, b). The patient was treated with open debridement and distraction arthroplasty; the postoperative X-ray showed clear joint space and was enlarged to 6.0 mm (c, d). The 1-year follow-up X-ray showed clear joint space and diminishing of subchondral sclerosis, and the joint space was 4.6 mm (e, f). The 3-year follow-up X-ray showed that the joint space is still clear and with a distance of 3.8 mm (g, h), and the patient was pain-free