Plantar Pressure Analysis in Children with Cerebral Palsy While Wearing Orthoses - a Descriptive Study

Abstract

Abstract Background Cerebral Palsy (CP) is the most common cause of motor disability in children, often leading to different musculoskeletal abnormalities, including foot deformities. Ankle-foot orthoses are commonly prescribed to minimize abnormal foot posture and to minimize the impact of spasticity on daily function. Dynamic pedobarography may provide new data to better assess the changes in plantar pressure distribution throughout the stance phase of gait in children with Cerebral Palsy.Methods Nine children with CP walked wearing plantar pressure insoles inside their orthoses and regular footwear. Mean values and standard deviation were calculated for each variable in a total and a segmented foot analysis. Clusters based on clinical distribution of spasticity, gait pattern and type of orthoses were created to allow for further analysis.Results Overall data was consistent across all participants and clusters. The use of AFO did not significantly impact any of the mean values for the variables in study, when referencing to the means of the same variables in children with CP walking in regular footwear. The cluster analysis revealed increased pedobarography values in Unilateral CP, Apparent Equinus gait pattern and Dynamic AFO sub-groups. In the segmented foot analysis, all variables increased from heel to the fore foot.Conclusions The use of AFO in children with CP produce positive changes in plantar pressure measurements, approximating them to the reference percentiles of typically developing children.