Congenital Chopart amputation. A functional assessment.

Abstract

Of 11 patients with congenital Chopart-level foot amputations, the average age was 6.75 years. Data collected from each patient included leg-length and calf-circumference measurements, range of motion at the ankle and subtalar joints, and a record of stump appearance. The patients were timed running a 50-m dash and measured in a standing broad-jump performance. Patients with congenital Chopart amputations functioned within normal limits in all of the authors' tests. No patient had a plantar flexion deformity. A slipper-style shoe filler or ankle foot orthosis with a foot plate and shoe filler was used as an easily fabricated and very functional prosthesis. The Chopart foot was found to have many advantages compared to a Symes-level amputation, including maintenance of functional length of the extremity, preservation of a broad weight-bearing surface, and an intact plantar fat pad.