Assessment of calf volume in congenital talipes equinovarus by computer analysed digital photography

The development of evidence-based approaches to the Congenital Talipes Equinovarus (CTEV) is impaired by the diversity of assessment techniques available, many of which have not been validated. Highly objective evaluation techniques that reflect the deformity and permit comparison between studies may lack the necessary link to functional features that are paramount to the patient, namely pain and mobility. Calf wasting is an acknowledged but little investigated component of the pathology. The rapid evolution of digital photography and computerised analytical techniques has yielded an opportunity to explore their role in the assessment of this common paediatric Orthopaedic pathology. This study presents the use of a cost-effective digital photographic assessment technique of maximal calf circumference and calf volume. These indices reflect the muscular development in the calf and therefore have significance in the functional assessment of CTEV and may represent an index of severity. Subjectivity has been limited by computerisation of the analysis process. The technique could easily be adapted to other volumetric analyses.