Abnormalities in children's feet are quite frequent and they can interfere with psychomotor development, so it is important that parents be attentive to any sign that something is not going well and let the pediatrician know.
Some signs that can make us suspect that children have a problem with their feet are: they walk strangely, complain of some pain or discomfort, adopt bad postures, do not want to play or play sports regularly ... Do you think it happens Any of this to your son or daughter?
We'll see now what are the anomalies in the most frequent children's feet that can be related to the previous signs, although not all of them need treatment. The most common solution is templates. Recall also that some problems will not need treatment at certain ages because they are physiological, but others do.
Flat feet
The child has flat feet when the plant has no curvature or bridge (nothing or almost nothing). These can cause tiredness, pain when walking ... They require the use of insoles, although from the age of four: flat feet are physiological before that age. They are usually called "flexible flat feet". But there are different types of flat feet and as we will see below some do need more attention.
Flat feet
The pathological flat feet limit the mobility of the child and are painful, the foot is stiff, and may require surgical intervention to solve them and the use of orthopedic footwear to relieve discomfort. They appear after the age of eight.
Valgo flatfoot
Valgus flatfoot is the term that refers to an abnormal foot because it has a flattened arch, an ankle that appears curved inward, and a heel that appears curved outward from the lower part of the ankle. Valgus flatfoot may require treatment.
Cavo foot
The cavo foot could be defined as the opposite of the flat foot, that is, it is an excess of curvature or foot bridge, of elevation of the plantar vault. The deformities of a children's cavus foot are flexible, so the child adapts to footwear and physical activity, usually without pain or calluses. It is convenient to use templates to accommodate soft tissue and eliminate pressure points.
In most cases there is no pain and no treatment is needed, but if when the child grows (towards adolescence), the tissues and joints become stiffer and produce pain and limitations in activity, the podiatrist will recommend the treatment ( footwear, insoles, rehabilitation ...). If a progressive or painful deformity is observed on the foot, an underlying neurological pathology must be ruled out.
Forefoot or metatarsus adduct
Due to a congenital malformation or a bad position of the fetus in the uterus, a forefoot adduct may arise. It happens when the front half of the foot looks inward, and usually straightens itself. Treatment is needed if an abnormal deformity of the foot is observed with a marked skin fold in the medial face, or there is sufficient stiffness that prevents manipulation hypercorrection. Obviously, it is a specialist who has to determine the degree and type of anomaly.
Foot varro
The boy presents varus foot when the heel and fingers are supported by the outside (ring and little finger). Normally, it is associated with a lateralization of the legs and knees or other foot disorders (cavo-varus, equine-varus ...). This pathology requires templates to correct the tread and different exercises are recommended. They must be treated by personnel specified in orthopedics and require follow-up.
Equine foot
It happens when the little ones only support the toes and do not get to settle the heel on the floor, persistently. It is what is known as "equine march". Use of templates is recommended. Before three years, this mode of walking on tiptoe can be transitory. Some children older than three years persist with this habit despite not presenting any neurological abnormality, and it could be due to a slight shortening of the Achilles tendon. These cases have to be diagnosed to define the cause.
Valgus foot
The child has a valgus foot when he supports them on the inside of the heel and the ankle goes inwards. It is a common posture and movement until three years. After that age, templates are recommended for correction.
Many of these abnormalities in children's feet They can be combined and have many manifestations, origin, treatments ... Therefore it is essential that we do the proper medical follow-up in the reviews, that the evolution of the baby's feet is controlled and we go to the pediatrician if we have doubts or suspicions.
Before finishing, we must remember that the choice of a good children's footwear is important for the health of the feet when children start walking and onwards (before the first steps, children can go barefoot perfectly).
Definitely, being attentive to the health of the feet in children is important to detect abnormalities, since we will be in time to control them and avoid major problems in the legs, back ... or the locomotor system of the child is affected.
Photos | Thinkstock and Arkansas ShutterBug on Flickr
In Babies and more | The evolution of the feet in babies and children, Babies who walk on tiptoe
