Treated and untreated unstable hips in severe cerebral palsy.

One hundred patients with severe cerebral palsy (total body involvement) and dislocated hips were examined to determine their level of pain, sitting ability, pelvic obliquity, scoliosis, nursing care difficulties and complications of decubitus ulcers and fractures. 50 of the patients had undergone surgical procedures to treat the hip; 50 had received no treatment. No significant differences were found in the frequency of pain or other complications between the two groups. Nursing care difficulties and the ability to sit did not depend on the status of the hip. Pelvic obliquity and scoliosis were related to the severity of neurological damage rather than to hip stability. These findings suggest that surgical treatment of already dislocated hips of patients with severe cerebral palsy is not helpful.