The 30-year-old defender is now expected to be sidelined for around three weeks, but club physio Jim Marshall confirmed the operation had been a success.
"Through keyhole surgery they looked into the back part of Neil's ankle and found that the capsule at the back of the joint, which he damaged in pre-season, was still quite inflamed," stated Marshall.
"That is why he has been bothered by it ever since and aggravated it again against Brighton.
"It is what's called a chronic inflammation so Mr Bowyer (the surgeon) has cleaned a lot of it out and put a steroid anti-inflammatory injection directly into the problem area.
"This means Neil should be back in contention in three weeks' time."
