A cohort study of tibialis anterior tendon shortening in combination with calf muscle lengthening in spastic equinus in cerebral palsy.
The aim of this study was to evaluate the outcome of combined tibialis anterior tendon shortening (TATS) and calf muscle-tendon lengthening (CMTL) in spastic equinus. Prospectively collected data was analysed in 26 patients with hemiplegic (n=13) and diplegic (n=13) cerebral palsy (CP) (GMFCS level I or II, 14 males, 12 females, age range 10-35 years; mean 16.8 years). All patients had pre-operative 3D gait analysis and a further analysis at a mean of 17.1 months (±5.6months) after surgery. None was lost to follow-up. Twenty-eight combined TATS and CMTL were undertaken and 19 patients had additional synchronous multilevel surgery. At follow-up 79% of patients had improved foot positioning at initial contact, whilst 68% reported improved fitting or reduced requirement of orthotic support. Statistically significant improvements were seen in the Movement Analysis Profile for ankle dorsi-/plantarflexion (4.15°, p=0.032), maximum ankle dorsiflexion during swing phase (11.68°, p<0.001), and Edinburgh Visual Gait Score (EVGS) (4.85, p=0.014). Diplegic patients had a greater improvement in the EVGS than hemiplegics (6.27 -vs- 2.21, p=0.024). The originators of combined TATS and CMTL showed that it improved foot positioning during gait. The present study has independently confirmed favourable outcomes in a similar patient population and added additional outcome measures, the EVGS, foot positioning at initial contact, and maximum ankle dorsiflexion during swing phase. Study limitations include short term follow-up in a heterogeneous population and that 19 patients had additional surgery. TATS combined with CMTL is a recommended option for spastic equinus in ambulatory patients with CP.
['Tsang|S T J|STJ|', 'McMorran|D|D|', 'Robinson|L|L|', 'Herman|J|J|', 'Robb|J E|JE|', 'Gaston|M S|MS|']
D000293:Adolescent D000328:Adult D000843:Ankle Joint D002547:Cerebral Palsy D002648:Child D004863:Equinus Deformity D005260:Female D005684:Gait D020233:Gait Disorders, Neurologic D006801:Humans D007866:Leg D008297:Male D009128:Muscle Spasticity D018482:Muscle, Skeletal D012189:Retrospective Studies D013710:Tendons D058971:Tenotomy D055815:Young Adult
Equinus Cerebral palsy Gait