Ss. Thomas et al., GAIT CHANGES IN CHILDREN WITH SPASTIC DIPLEGIA AFTER SELECTIVE DORSALRHIZOTOMY, Journal of pediatric orthopedics, 16(6), 1996, pp. 747-752
Twenty-six ambulatory children underwent preoperative and 1-year posto
perative assessments after selective dorsal rhizotomy. These included
spasticity, passive range of motion, tone, three-dimensional motion an
alysis, and electromyography. Independent and dependent ambulators wer
e evaluated separately, A decrease in spasticity was found in all lowe
r extremity muscle groups. An increase in passive range of motion was
found only at the hip for both independent and dependent ambulators. G
ait changes included increases in velocity and stride length in the in
dependent ambulators. An improvement in hip extension during stance wa
s found in the dependent ambulators only; however, an increase in knee
extension and dorsiflexion in stance were seen in both groups. Select
ive dorsal rhizotomy improves both passive and dynamic range of motion
in children with spastic diplegia.