[Treatment of spastic foot by selective neurotomy of the tibial nerve. Results of a series of 31 cases].

A large number of patients suffering from various neurological diseases remain disabled because of spastic disorders in their foot. These disorders--which are responsible for abnormal postures and painful disturbances for walking and standing--can be corrected by an effective procedure: the so-called Selective Neurotomy of the Tibial Nerve (T.N.), developed in its modern form by Gros in 1972. The procedure aims at sectioning the T.N. branches corresponding to the muscles, the spasticity of which is considered harmful, i.e. the soleus (and/or gastrocnemius) nerves for equinus and ankle clonus, the posterior tibialis branch for varus, and the flexor fascicles for tonic flexion of the toes. After dissection of each T.N. branches at the lower part of the popliteal region and their identification with bipolar electro-stimulation, the selected nerves are sectioned partially (about two-third of their caliber) under the operative microscope. The present series consists of 37 operations--performed 25 times unilaterally and 6 bilaterally--in 31 patients, 17 to 68 year old (39 on average). In 11 patients spasticity was from spinal cord origin and in the 20 others from vascular or traumatic cerebral damages. The spastic disorders--installed for 2 to 17 years (4 on average)--were due to one, several or all the following components: equinus, ankle clonus, varus, flexion of the toes. Surgery obtained complete suppression of the disabling spastic components, total pain relief and consequently improvement of the residual voluntary movements by achieving balance between agonist and antagonist muscles, in 33 out of the 37 cases, i.e. in 91% of the patients.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)