CMT 1A: Preschoolers - Factors Associated with Foot and Ankle Strength

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J Child Neurol. 2009 Aug 11.

Factors Associated With Foot and Ankle Strength in Healthy Preschool-Age

Children and Age-Matched Cases of Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease Type 1A.

Rose KJ, Burns J, North KN.

Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, & Institute for Neuroscience and

Muscle Research, Children's Hospital at Westmead, Sydney, Australia.

Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease affects foot and ankle strength from the earliest

stages of the disease; however, little is known about factors influencing normal

strength development or the pathogenesis of foot weakness and deformity in

Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease.

The authors investigated factors associated with foot and ankle strength in

healthy preschool-age children and compared to age-matched cases of

Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease type 1A.

In healthy children, ankle dorsiflexion range of motion was one of the strongest

independent correlates of foot and ankle strength.

Compared with healthy children, those with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease type 1A

had significantly less dorsiflexion strength and range as well as imbalance in

inversion-to-eversion and plantarflexion-to-dorsiflexion strength ratios.

Given the association between ankle dorsiflexion strength and range in the

healthy children, and the abnormality of these parameters in Charcot-Marie-Tooth

disease, investigation of the cause-effect relationship is warranted to identify

more targeted therapy and further understand the pathogenesis of foot deformity

in Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease.