Equinus In Children Research Articles

Augmented auditory feed back in the treatment of equinus gait in children.

This study is a report on the treatment of dynamic equinus in children with cerebral palsy or idiopathic toe-walking, by means of auditory augmented feedback. The initial results (after three months) showed improvement in every case, and in four patients with longer follow-up improvement appeared to be maintained or continued, although at a reduced pace. This treatment method is recommended only for children over the age of four years who are independently ambulatory, who have a range of ankle dorsiflexion to neutral or beyond with the knee extended, and who have a supportive and co-operative family.

Variation in the long-term results of elongation of the tendo Achillis in children with cerebral palsy.

Clinical assessment of equinus in children before and after operation was made over a twenty-year period (1958-1978), and three groups were defined. Forty-three muscles (Group I) had abnormal shortening without spasticity and the deformity progressed steadily despite immediate improvement after operation; this was considered to be the result of a lack of muscle growth during bone growth. Forty-one muscles (Group II) had both shortening and spasticity with an imbalance which might be unchanged after operation, or reversed or improved. Fourteen muscles (Group III) had spasticity only and progression was unpredictable and could not be defined. Improvement in gait was regularly observed in Group I in the early years after operation. In Groups II and III the results were variable. These results did not depend on surgical technique but on differences in pathophysiology.