Trapdoor Procedure
What is a Trapdoor Procedure of the Ankle?
The trapdoor procedure is Dr. Kennedy's approach to preserving the cartilage in his younger patients that suffer Osteochondritis dissecans.
Indications for Trapdoor Procedure
- Diagnosis of Osteochondritis dissecans
- Open growth plate
- Intact cartilage
How It's Done
The surgery is performed under general anesthesia. It involves the following steps:
A trapdoor procedure lifts the cartilage from the talar dome, fills the boney defect with a bone graft from the patient’s heel bone and replaces the ‘trap door’ preserving the patient’s cartilage. This is done arthroscopically.
Outcome of Trapdoor Procedure
Patients typically experience reduced pain with improvement in the movement and functionng of the foot. Complications are rare.
Dr. Kennedy has seen over a 90% success rate
Dr. Kennedy is one a very few surgeons in the US who perform this procedure on children and adolescents with Talar osteochondral defects (OCD). His outcomes are over 90%, success, preserving the patient's own cartilage which is better than any reparative tissue.
We also perform the following Osteochondral Lesion procedures:
OATS Procedure: Osteochondral Autograft Transplantation System
