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Original article

Outcomes of surgery for chronic exertional compartment syndrome in a military population Andrew J Roberts,1 P Krishnasamy,2 J M Quayle,3 J M Houghton2 1

Higher Scientific Officer, Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre, Epsom, Surrey, UK 2 Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre, Epsom, Surrey, UK 3 Frimley Park Hospital, Frimley, Surrey, UK Correspondence to Andrew Roberts, Defence Medical Rehabilitation Centre, Epsom, Surrey KT18 6JW, UK; [email protected] Received 21 October 2013 Revised 7 February 2014 Accepted 24 February 2014

ABSTRACT Aim To determine the outcome following fasciectomy for chronic exertional compartment syndrome (CECS) in the UK military, and the association between presurgical intramuscular pressure (IMP) and outcome. Methods All patients who underwent fasciectomy for anterior CECS were identified between 2007 and 2010. Presurgery and postsurgery military medical grading for leg function was extracted from the medical records system. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test compared grades before and after surgery. Spearman’s rank correlation examined the relationship between IMP and outcome. Results Presurgery and postsurgery grading was available for 63% of patients. These patients had significantly better leg function after surgery (Z=−3.63, p