title: Treatment of patellofemoral instability in Down's syndrome.
abstract: In a retrospective review, 16 patients with Down's syndrome with the chief complaint of patellofemoral joint dislocations or subluxations were studied. Twenty-six dislocatable or dislocated patellae were seen in these 16 patients. The degree of patellofemoral instability was not correlated with either the ambulatory status or the form of treatment (operative/nonoperative). An increasing degree of patellofemoral instability was correlated strongly with the presence of deformities. Nonoperative treatment either maintained or improved the ambulatory status in 67% of these knees with either fair or good ambulation, whereas 80% of the knees with poor ambulation did not improve. Operative treatment resulted in good ambulatory ability in 86% of the knees with fair or poor preoperative ambulatory status, but did not effectively correct deformities that subsequently resulted in degenerative arthritis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Education, Alfred I. duPont Institute, Wilmington, DE 19899.
authors.forename: A A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Mendez
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Keret
authors.forename: G D
authors.initials: GD
authors.lastname: MacEwen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004314:Down Syndrome / Q000150:complications*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D004204:Joint Dislocations / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*; D007593:Joint Instability / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D007719:Knee Joint / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000601:surgery; D008297:Male; D010329:Patella / Q000503:physiopathology; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies