[Congenital short Achilles tendon. A survey of habitual toe-walking in children]

Abstract

Congenital short tendo calcaneus is seen in children as partial or complete walking on the toes, and may represent a major disturbance for normal motor development and coordination. This clinical finding may indicate a more serious, underlying disease (cerebral paresis, childhood psychosis or a neuromuscular disorder). If the patient, apart from walking on the toes exhibits normal clinical findings, the diagnosis of congenital short tendo calcaneus may be justified. The disease may be inherited. The diagnosis should be made by an orthopaedist, and the treatment is either conservative with aggressive physical therapy, or surgery. The prognosis is good after early diagnosis and special treatment. A review of the literature, with emphasis on diagnosis and treatment, is presented, together with a brief review of five patients operated by the authors.