The American journal of sports medicine
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To determine the necessity of ankle and foot radiographs, we used modified Ottawa Ankle Rules to evaluate all cadets seen with an acute ankle or midfoot injury at the United States Military Academy. This scoring system determines the need for radiographs. Each patient was independently examined and the decision rules were applied by a physical therapist and an orthopaedic surgeon. ⋯ Interobserver agreement between the orthopaedic surgeons and physical therapists regarding the overall decision to obtain radiographs was high, with a kappa coefficient value of 0.82 for ankle injuries and 0.88 for foot injuries. There were no false-negative results. Use of the modified Ottawa Ankle Rules would have reduced the necessity for ankle and foot radiographs by 46% and 79%, respectively.