A bimalleolar fracture is a fracture of the ankle

Ankle

The ankle joint is formed where the foot and the leg meet. The ankle, or talocrural joint, is a synovial hinge joint that connects the distal ends of the tibia and fibula in the lower limb with the proximal end of the talus bone in the foot...

 that involves the lateral malleolus and the medial malleolus. Studies have shown that bimalleolar fractures are more common in women, people over 60 years of age, and patients with existing comorbidities.

Treatment and prognosis

Surgical treatment will often be required, usually an Open Reduction Internal Fixation. This involves the surgical reduction

Reduction (orthopedic surgery)

Reduction is a medical procedure to restore a fracture or dislocation to the correct alignment. When a bone fractures, the fragments lose their alignment in the form of displacement or angulation. For the fractured bone to heal without any deformity the bony fragments must be re-aligned to their...

, or realignment, of the fracture followed by the implementation of surgical implants to aid in the healing of the fracture.

According to some studies, patients with bimalleolar fractures had significantly worse function in the ankle one year after surgical

Surgery

Surgery is an ancient medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a patient to investigate and/or treat a pathological condition such as disease or injury, or to help improve bodily function or appearance.An act of performing surgery may be called a surgical...

treatment. After recovering fully from their fractures, the majority of patients experience little to mild pain and have few restrictions in functionality.