Achilles Tendon Repair

About Achilles Tendon Repair

Achilles tendon repair is surgery to reconnect the ends of a ruptured Achilles tendon, the strong tendon that joins the calf muscles to the heel bone. Ruptures typically occur during sports involving sudden pushing off or jumping and are most common in middle aged recreational athletes. In open repair, the surgeon makes an incision along the back of the lower leg, brings the torn ends together and sews them with strong sutures. Minimally invasive and percutaneous techniques use smaller incisions and specialized devices to pass sutures. Nonsurgical treatment with a functional brace or cast and early controlled movement is a well established alternative, and randomized trials have found that with accelerated rehabilitation protocols the difference in re rupture risk between surgical and nonsurgical treatment can be small, while surgery carries risks related to the wound and nerves. The choice depends on activity level, patient preference, timing and tendon gap. Chronic or neglected ruptures may require reconstruction using tendon transfers or grafts.