Advances in the Treatment of Osteochondral Lesions of the Talus

Osteochondral lesion of the talus (OLT) is a localized cartilage and subchondral bone injury of the talus trochlea. OLT is caused by trauma and other reasons, including osteochondritis dissecans of the talus (OCD) and talus osteochondral tangential fracture. OLT can develop from being asymptomatic to subchondral bone cysts accompanied by deep ankle pain. OLT tends to occur on the medial and lateral sides of the talar vault. OLT seriously affects the patients' life and work and may even lead to disability. Herein, we reviewed advances in the treatment of OLT and the strengths and weaknesses of various treatments. Different treatment methods, including conservative treatments and surgical treatments, can be adopted according to the different subtypes or clinical symptoms of OLT. Conservative treatments mostly relieve symptoms in the short term and only slow down the disease. In recent years, it has been discovered that platelet-rich plasma injection, microfracture, periosteal bone grafting, talar cartilage transplantation, allograft bone transplantation, reverse drilling under robotic navigation, and other methods can achieve considerable benefits when each of these treatment methods is applied. Furthermore, microfracture combined with platelet-rich plasma injections, microfracture combined with cartilage transplantation, and various other treatment methods combined with anterior talofibular ligament repair have all led to good treatment outcomes.