PIGEON TOES IN CHILDREN
Posted on Apr 28, 2009 under General health | No CommentSymptom: turning in of the toes
Home care:
Encourage your infant to sleep with the toes turned outward.
If so instructed by your doctor, massage the child’s feet to correct the toeing-in.
Precautions
- Note that most cases of pigeon toes correct themselves; however, if the child is toeing in after the age of three months, consult a doctor.
- Never allow a shoe salesperson to recommend orthopedic or corrective shoes for your child. The prescription must always be made by a qualified professional.
Toeing-in of the feet, particularly when standing and walking, is known as pigeon toes. After birth, the position and shape of the feet and legs reflect the position they held during the baby’s last weeks in the mother’s womb. By the age of three months, the child’s feet and legs should have assumed a normal shape.
Throughout infancy and early childhood, however, the position of the feet and legs can be influenced by the manner in which they are held while the child is sitting and lying down. If the child habitually sleeps face down with the toes directed inward, this position encourages the development of pigeon toes.
Pigeon toes also may result from a malformation of the foot (adductovarus deformity), of the lower leg (tibial torsion), or of the thigh bone (femoral torsion or femoral ante version). Depending on the severity of the malformation the child’s toes will point inward to a greater or lesser degree. A child who has a marked malformation will tend to trip over his or her feet until he or she learns to compensate for the condition.
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