Operative treatment of calcaneal features through an extensile lateral approach (ELA) has been the gold standard over many years despite high rates of infection and soft tissue complications.

Lately, there has been a trend towards less invasive fixation methods. Minimally invasive plate osteosynthesis using the sinus tarsi approach (STA) has gained popularity during the last decade.

Furthermore, percutaneous reduction and fixation techniques have been described and used for a few decades. In the early 2000s, Rammelt et al. were the first who introduced a percutaneous technique assisted by hindfoot arthroscopy. The percutaneous and arthroscopically assisted calcaneal osteosynthesis (PACO) is applicable in Sanders II and III fractures and has been shown to provide good clinical outcomes as well as a low rate of complications.

The study is designed as a non-inferiority study. Our hypothesis is that the percutaneous and arthroscopically assisted technique provides non-inferior outcomes compared to the sinus tarsi approach in Sanders II and III calcaneal fractures.