title: The kinematic patterns of toe-walkers.
abstract: Children who toe-walk can pose a diagnostic problem. The differential diagnosis includes mild spastic diplegia and idiopathic toe-walking. Clinical differentiation between these two patient groups can be particularly difficult, and there are no objective diagnostic tests to assist the clinician. We assessed 50 children who toe-walk to define the kinematic patterns of lower-limb joint motion in the sagittal plane. There were 23 children with mild spastic diplegia. 22 idiopathic toe-walkers, and five normal children who were asked to toe-walk. We found characteristic patterns of knee and ankle motion that differentiated spastic diplegia from idiopathic toe-walking. Normal children asked to toe-walk had the same pattern as the idiopathic group. Gait analysis is a diagnostic tool that enables the clinician objectively to differentiate mild spastic diplegia from idiopathic toe-walking.
authors.affiliation: Central Remedial Clinic, Dublin, Ireland.
authors.forename: I P
authors.initials: IP
authors.lastname: Kelly
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jenkinson
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Stephens
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: O'Brien
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000843:Ankle Joint / Q000503:physiopathology; D002547:Cerebral Palsy / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005684:Gait; D006801:Humans; D007719:Knee Joint / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D009068:Movement