Which children with cerebral palsy will go off their feet—and why? A preliminary study

1. Summary/conclusions This study set out to identify which children with cerebral palsy will become, or will remain good community walkers [1] following surgery to improve their walking performance, and which will not. Pre-operative gait analysis data, together with neonatal information, was taken from a group of 21 children where the long-term outcome, in terms of walking status, was known. Although this was a small study, it was found that neonatal factors, precise diagnosis and type of surgery did not seem influential while pre-operative slow speed of walking ( 40 kg) and high energy consumption (>0.92 extra heart beats per metre (hbpm)) were indicative of a poorer long-term outcome. Preliminary or alternative management strategies may thus be more appropriate for children with this presentation. Results from kinetic assessment showed that only community walkers achieved a neutral knee moment pre-operatively at mid stance. This may be valuable in helping to understand why children go off their feet, suggesting that control strategy at the knee is a pertinent factor.