Biomechanics of medial hamstring lengthening.

Background: Medial hamstring lengthening is frequently used to correct contractures in neuromuscular conditions such as cerebral palsy. Surgical techniques vary considerably and little is known about the lengthening characteristics of muscle-tendon-units after surgical intervention.

Methods: A randomized trial was performed on paired cadaver medial hamstring muscle-tendon-units comparing 'High' (proximal) versus 'Low' (distal) lengthening procedures.

The effects of intramuscular tenotomy on the lengthening characteristics of tibialis posterior: high versus low intramuscular tenotomy.

Background: Lengthening of soft-tissue contractures is frequently required in children with a wide variety of congenital and acquired deformities. However, little is known about the biomechanics of surgical procedures which are commonly used in contracture surgery, or if variations in technique may have a bearing on surgical outcomes. We investigated the hypothesis that the site of intramuscular tenotomy (IMT) within the muscle-tendon-unit (MTU) of the tibialis posterior (TP) would affect the lengthening characteristics.