MANAGEMENT OF CONGENITAL TALIPES EQUINOVARUS WITH PONSETI TECHNIQUE IN CHILDREN UNDER 2 YEARS OF AGE

AbstractBackground and Objectives: CTEV is a complex congenital deformity of the foot and occurs due to theconfluence of genetic & environmental factors. If it is not treated promptly and accordingly, it limits patientmobility and results in a painful foot. In most cases, it is treated conservatively using the Ponseti technique.This method was developed by a Japanese orthopedic surgeon Ignatio Ponseti who successfully treatedCTEV in infants without extensive surgery. It is a manipulative technique with percutaneous release oftendoachilles that allows the ankle to obtain correction. This study was conducted to assess the functionaloutcomes of CTEVmanagement by Ponseti method.Methods: Ethical approval was obtained from the Ethical Review Board Of Services Hospital Lahore. Thisdescriptive study was conducted at the department of orthopedic surgery from December 2018 to December2020. A total number of 120 patients having CTEV deformity of the foot, aged less than 2 years, wereincluded in the study. From these, 70 children had bilateral foot involvement. It was treated with 5-7 castswith each cast applied for 07 days according to the Ponseti method. In the final cast, a percutaneous AchillesTenotomy was performed, where the deformity was restricted to 10 degrees from the neutral. Aftercompletion of casts, each patient was braced with Foot Abduction Brace.Results: We used Pirani Score for pre- and post-operative assessment of correction of deformity via Ponsetimethod. There were 91% excellent results achieved through this method, whilst 6% of patients had goodresults and 3% had poor results.Conclusion: Ponseti technique has got good functional & cosmetic results. It is economical and easy toapply.Key words: Club foot, Pirani Shafique score, Ponseti technique, CTEV