Surgical Treatment of Insertional Achilles Tendinopathy Augmented With Human Acellular Dermal Matrix: A Retrospective Case Series.

Background: Insertional Achilles tendinopathy (IAT) is often surgically treated with Achilles tendon partial or total detachment, debridement and repair of the Achilles tendon, excision of retrocalcaneal exostosis, and suture anchor reattachment. To date, there is no report that examines the use of acellular dermal matrix (ADM) augmentation in this procedure without the use of suture anchor reattachment.

Methods: Thirty-two female and 10 male patients (mean age 52 years) with IAT underwent surgical treatment including partial detachment of the Achilles tendon, excision of the retrocalcaneal exostosis, debridement and repair of the Achilles tendon, and augmentation with human acellular dermal matrix allograft. Outcomes measured were the visual analog scale (VAS) score, time to weightbearing, major and minor complications.

Results: Forty-two patients were followed for a mean of 20.8 months. The VAS score improved from a mean of 5.1 to 1.9 at final follow-up. The mean time to weightbearing was 4.4 weeks. Eleven patients (26.2%) experienced complications. One patient (2.4%) suffered a rupture of the Achilles in the early postoperative period. Three patients (7.1%) had delayed wound healing, with 1 (2.4%) requiring surgical debridement. Two (4.8%) experienced continued pain requiring further surgical treatment.

Conclusion: This protocol for surgical treatment of IAT with the use of human ADM allograft augmentation resulted in improved VAS scores and was associated with a low risk of postoperative infection without a prolonged nonweightbearing period.

Level of evidence: Level IV, retrospective case series.