Anterior region of ankle

The anterior region of ankle is located in front of the ankle joint. It denotes the area where the extensor surface of the leg meets the dorsum of the foot.

Being a synovial joint, the ankle joint is enveloped by a fibrous capsule. However, the capsule exhibits laxity in the anterior ankle region, facilitating a wide range of motion during dorsiflexion. This dorsiflexion movement is executed by the long tendons of the muscles in the extensor (or anterior) leg region as they traverse the anterior region of ankle. To prevent these long tendons from bowstringing during dorsiflexion, they are secured to underlying bony surface by a deep fascial thickening known as the extensor retinaculum. The extensor retinaculum wraps around the long extensor tendons, including those of the tibialis anterior, extensor hallucis longus, extensor digitorum longus, and peroneus tertius muscles. While the tibialis anterior, positioned medially, also contributes to foot inversion, the peroneus tertius, situated laterally, contributes to foot eversion.

It is worth noting that a similar laxity in the fibrous capsule exists in the posterior ankle region, facilitating smooth movement during plantar flexion. In contrast to dorsiflexion, plantar flexion is accomplished by the long flexor tendons of the posterior leg region that traverse the tarsal tunnel located behind the medial malleolus.