The orthopaedic management of the ankle, foot, and knee in patients with cerebral palsy.

The surgical treatment of children with spastic cerebral palsy should be directed at all the problems of the child rather than focusing on one problem area at a time. Although the difficulties encountered by these children can be divided into separate areas for discussion, treating one problem without consideration of the others will result in unnecessary additional hospitalization for subsequent operations. In addition, since each joint is intimately linked to another, surgical treatment of one joint problem may lead to worsening of an adjacent joint deformity unless it too is addressed. Thus, the surgical care of the lower extremities in spastic cerebral palsy requires that the entire patient be evaluated and all necessary surgical procedures be coordinated.