Batchelor's extra-articular subtalar arthrodesis. A report on sixty-four procedures in patients with poliomyelitic deformities.

Sixty-four feet of fifty-four patients treated with Batchelor's extra-articular subtalar arthrodesis for poliomyelitic deformities were reviewed after a minimum follow-up of four years. Early in the series the results were poor because of inexperience with the technique and poor selection of patients. The incidence of non-union, which appeared to be high in this series compared with other series in which the Grice technique was used, was attributed mainly to the more advanced age of our patients at the time of arthrodesis (average age, 9.9 years). A common factor in the cause of non-union was tightness of the heel cord. Redistribution of muscles to balance power in the foot did not appear to be necessary to achieve good results in feet with equinovalgus deformity, and conversely, energetic redistribution of muscle power in these feet did not result in late varus deformity.