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The clubfoot painted by Jusepe de Ribera: a controversial diagnosis

2015; Informa; Volume: 29; Issue: 8 Linguagem: Inglês

10.3109/14767058.2015.1046829

1476-7058

A Stahl, P. Tourame, Debbie Montjean,

Spinal Dysraphism and Malformations

The Clubfoot painted by José de Ribera depicts a young beggar affected by a typical equinus clubfoot. He shows a contorted right hand and wrist. His left hand holds a begging note, suggesting some difficulty to speak. This condition may be caused by a cerebral palsy, consisting of a brain injury in the left hemisphere responsible for right hemiplegia and speech disturbance. Recently, it was suggested that the boy’s condition is a consequence of arthrogryposis, perhaps amyoplasia or distal arthrogryposis type A1. Some clinical features may suggest the diagnosis of Sheldon–Hall syndrome. Considering all the signs represented on the painting, the diagnosis of hemiplegia due to cerebral palsy cannot be discarded. The present article is a novel analysis of the painting based on previously proposed diagnoses of the boy’s condition, namely, hemiplegia and arthrogryposis.