Whatever the name, every foot operation can be placed by asking three things. Getting these answered turns an intimidating term into something you can actually weigh.

For much of the twentieth century, extensive surgical release was the standard treatment for clubfoot. Ponseti casting displaced it because the long-term results were better: casted feet are generally more supple, stronger in the calf and less painful in adulthood than surgically released ones.

Modern practice uses surgery for what casting cannot achieve. A relapse that will not respond, a residual deformity that has become symptomatic, or an adult foot that has worn out. That is a much narrower role than it once had, and it is why hearing “surgery” today usually means something more targeted than it would have meant to your parents.