ABSTRACT
Orthopaedic impairment refers to disorders of bones and joints and associated muscles, tendons and ligaments; and to physical disability, for example spinal curvature, talipes and juvenile idiopathic arthritis. Motor disorders may be associated with neuromotor impairment involving the central nervous system and affecting the child's ability to use, feel, control and move certain parts of the body. Examples are muscular dystrophy, cerebral palsy and neural tube defects. Identification of spinal curvature is made through the symptoms of shortened stature, altered posture and decreased lung capacity. Severity and any progression of spinal curvature are determined by X-ray. Muscular dystrophies are types of genetic, usually progressive muscular disorders in which the breakdown of muscle fibre leads to weak and wasted muscles. While some types affect both sexes, Duchenne muscular dystrophy, the most common form, affects boys exclusively. Spastic cerebral palsy is characterised by disordered control of movement. Its three main types are quadriplegia, hemiplegia and diplegia.
