Reducing unnecessary imaging in ankle and foot trauma

The Ottawa foot and ankle rules, widely known as the Ottawa ankle rules, are a clinical decision tool developed in 1992 to improve care for patients with foot and ankle trauma. The rules are intended to reduce unnecessary radiation exposure from diagnostic imaging for patients and to reduce emergency department wait times and healthcare costs. During 30 years of validation and implementation studies, the Ottawa ankle rules have been shown to have sensitivity approaching 100%1 for assessing ankle and foot trauma, and to reduce use of radiography by up to 30%.23 However, utilisation of the rules remains low across the world, including in Canada where they were first developed.