On occasion, stretching, casting and bracing are not enough to correct your baby's clubfoot. Surgery may be needed to adjust the tendons, ligaments and joints in the foot/ankle. Usually done at 9 to12 months of age, surgery corrects all of your baby's clubfoot deformities at the same time. After surgery, a cast holds the clubfoot still while it heals. It's still possible for the muscles in your child's foot to try to return to the clubfoot position, and special shoes or braces will likely be used for up to a year or more after surgery. Surgery is likely result in a stiffer foot than nonsurgical treatment, particularly as the years pass by. After introduction of Ponseti technique the rate of surgery has gone down significantly. The patients who need surgery are the ones who have not taken any treatment in time, did not wear the brace properly or did not take proper plaster treatment.

Without any treatment, your child's clubfoot will result in severe functional disability. With treatment, your child should have a nearly normal foot. He or she can run and play without pain and wear normal shoes. The corrected clubfoot will still not be perfect, however. You should expect it to stay 1 to 1 1/2 sizes smaller and somewhat less mobile than the normal foot. The calf muscles in your child's clubfoot leg will also stay smaller.

Before Surgery

   
After Surgery

Neglected cases

This child had foot deformity since birth. His elder brother also had similar but mild problem and which got resolved with physiotherapy and plasters. The parents tried with the same treatment for Madhav but he did not improved. Due to fear of surgery no doctor was consulted and Madhav grew with his feet getting more and more deformed. He then started walking on outer and upper border of feet which led to further increase in his deformities.

He went for surgery of both his feet one by one and then given corrective plasters and then special splints to maintain correction.

Today Madhav is a new boy with fully corrected feet and walks on sole of his feet and goes to play with his friends the whole day.

Resurgery

Taha is a loving boy of seven. He was born with club feet on both sides and had surgery for the same at age of 7 months. Initially the feet were fine but with growth his parents noticed problem of recurrence of deformity in both feet more on right side.

He came with complex problem and stiff foot due to previous surgery and a scar. A difficult and lengthy surgery for bone and transfer of muscle tendon was done to restore the normal shape and function of his right foot.

Encouraged with the result of more deformed right foot he has undergone surgery for the left foot as well.