LEG LENGTH DISCREPANCY: HOW MUCH IS TOO MUCH?

Abstract

A survey of 74 skeletally mature patients with leg length discrepancies of 1.5 cm or more revealed that patients with less than a 2.0-cm discrepancy did not consider their short leg to be a problem in any way. As the amount of discrepancy increased, there were more problems, although there was no critical "cutoff" point. Some patients functioned well athletically with discrepancies of over 2.5 cm. A survey of pediatric orthopedists reflected the wide variety of opinion regarding indications for equalization of leg length discrepancy noted in the literature. It is concluded that there seems little indication for equalization of discrepancies less than 2 cm. For larger amounts of discrepancy, "clinical judgment" still must be weighed on an individual basis, as individual variation among patients with leg length discrepancy confounds any precise classification of functional disability.