Cerebral palsy and foot deformities
| Location: | Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre, Oxford in conjunction with the Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford. |
|---|---|
| Amount: | £131,650 |
| Status: | Research completed |
| Start Date: | 19th November 2001 |
| Finish Date: | 31st March 2005 |
| Grantholder: | Mr T Theologis, MD, MSc, PhD, Mrs N Thompson, MSc, MCSP, Dr M E Harrington, BEng, DPhil and Dr A B Zavatsky, MA, DPhil. |
| Research worker: | Mr N Annetts, Miss J Stebbins, Dr M Harrington and Mrs N Thompson |
Cerebral palsy (CP) is a disorder of movement and posture, caused by damage to the developing brain. The damage occurs before or during birth, or in the early months of infancy, in around 1 in every 400 babies. About 90% of children with the condition have foot deformities that can significantly affect walking and some require surgery. Our current understanding of foot movement and loading during walking is limited and therefore treatment of foot deformity in cerebral palsy remains mainly by trial and error. This study aims to progress the understanding of these foot problems and to establish objective criteria for their treatment.
