The safety of spinal pedicle screws in children ages 1 to 12.

Background Context: Pedicle screws have shown to be a safe and effective method of spinal fixation, offering superior multiplanar correction compared with hooks or sublaminar wires in selected situations. Though only food and drug administration (FDA) approved in the adolescent population, they are commonly used in an off-label manner in the preadolescent population.

Purpose: To determine if the complication rate of the off-label use of pedicle screws for spinal fixation in the preadolescent 0- to 12-year-old population is comparable with the complication rate in the FDA-approved 13- to 18-year-old population.

Effectiveness of an anesthetic continuous-infusion device in children with cerebral palsy undergoing orthopaedic surgery.

Background: Effective postoperative pain management is a vital component of orthopaedic surgical care in the pediatric population. In children with cognitive impairments pain management can be difficult, making these children vulnerable to ineffectively managed postoperative pain. This prospective, randomised study evaluated the use of a local anesthetic continuous infusion device (pain pump) to manage postoperative pain in children with cerebral palsy (CP) undergoing lower extremity orthopaedic surgical procedures.

Femoral head resection as a salvage procedure for the severely dysplastic hip in nonambulatory children with cerebral palsy.

Background: Proximal femoral head resection (FHR) has been used as a treatment option in patients with cerebral palsy (CP) who suffer from pain, contractures, and impaired personal hygiene. We analyzed the overall functional outcome following this surgery and associated patient satisfaction.

Methods: This study was a retrospective case series with a follow-on questionnaire.

Rectus femoris transfer in children with cerebral palsy: evaluation of transfer site and preoperative indicators.

Background: Rectus femoris transfer (RFT) is a treatment option for children with cerebral palsy (CP) who exhibit a stiff-knee gait pattern. The rectus femoris muscle is transferred to different sites to overcome problems such as tripping and falling. Indications for RFT often include preoperative decreased knee range of motion (KROM) during swing phase, reduced peak knee flexion in swing (PKFSW), abnormal rectus femoris firing patterns on electromyography recordings, and a positive Duncan-Ely test.

Effectiveness of instrumented gait analysis in children with cerebral palsy--comparison of outcomes.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of instrumented gait analysis on the walking performance of children with cerebral palsy at The Children's Hospital, Denver. The study population consisted of 2 groups of 10 children; an experimental group (X) and a recommendation matched control group (C). All subjects had 2 instrumented gait analyses at least 1 year apart.