Η Βάδιση των Παιδιών είναι μια αναπτυξιακή διαδικασία που δίνει σημαντικές πληροφορίες για τη σωστή ανάπτυξη των παιδιών, αλλά και για άλλες σημαντικές παθολογικές οντότητες που χρειάζονται έγκαιρη διάγνωση και αποτελεσματική θεραπευτική αντιμετώπιση.

‍

‍
Most of the time, these are simply issues of delay in the expected developmental stages. However, children who are not just a "miniature" adult need the pediatric orthopedist's specialized knowledge of issues, such as:

‍
1. Walking on the toes (hippopotamia)
2. Walking with a foot without a foot arch (flatfoot) or an increased foot arch
(bellyfoot)
3. Walking with increased inward bend or outward bend
4. Curvature in the knee axis (breech or bunion)
5. Walking with lameness (imbalance, pain, neuromuscular problems, etc.)

‍

In infancy and toddlerhood, it matters when the infant sits or crawls or stands or starts walking without support. The way of walking is related both to anatomical problems (related to the spine, hips, etc.) and to problems of neurological immaturity. Information from the child's immediate family about the child's daily life is very important for the doctor. The child's inability to respond to simple or even more demanding activities should not be underestimated.

‍

‍

Gorge

Normal walking starts between 9 and 19 months of age. Walking is one of the first issues that the family is concerned about when mobilising the child.

‍

The common disturbances from the normal gait pattern involve either increased inward turn, increased outward turn, lameness, walking on the toes, etc.

‍

Walking in an inside turn

‍
Inward turning gait may be due to an anatomical disorder at one or more of the following 3 levels:Deformity of the foot, where the toes deviate towards the other foot (bean-shaped foot).Inward turning of the tibia. Increased tilt from the hip (neck of the femur). Normally, in infants, no treatment is required, other than monitoring. It will take several years to correct the inward leg rotation. Special shoes, guardianship or exercises will not speed up the correction. If the kink persists during late childhood (9 - 10 years of age), surgical treatment may be required. This is all too rare, in an otherwise healthy child.

‍

Wading into an outside turn

‍
Outward bending gait is more rare and is a result of immaturity or intrauterine position. The condition is corrected surgically only after the interval has elapsed, beyond which we no longer expect any improvement from the body itself. Each case is individualized as it depends on the cause.

‍

Flat feet in children

‍

Flatfoot in children is due to the lack/leveling of the arch of the foot. We do not need to be particularly concerned about infants and young toddlers unless there is clinical evidence that the flatfoot is stiff.

‍

In the majority of children, flat feet are corrected by the age of 6 years (and do not require any treatment). Treatment may be needed when the child has symptoms, i.e. pain and easy limb fatigue. Treatment is conservative with corrective insoles (inserts) and rarely with physiotherapy or plaster casts. Each case of flatfoot should be treated as unique, and for this reason a podiatry is extremely helpful in selecting the appropriate inserts for each patient. Surgical treatment of flatfoot is used in the most severe cases that do not respond to conservative treatment. When this is the case, radiographs and other special tests are needed.

‍

Early diagnosis

It is necessary for parents to make the right decisions in time. When they delay, the severity of surgery and the course of the disease changes.

Early and correct diagnosis makes surgical intervention less painful and complicated, and with better results.

Getting opinions from many different doctors delays timely intervention and increases the chance of a poor outcome.  

‍

Head of the Clinic
Dr N. Rigopoulos
Specialization in paediatric orthopaedics at Duke Medical Centre, NC, USA

‍

‍

The clinic will be held every Tuesday 10:30-12:30.

‍