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Children's health

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Original poster

DDs feet rolling inwards - what to do?

22 replies

cordyblue · 30/03/2011 15:43

Is this the sort of thing that should start with a GPs appointment?

Or will I look awfully silly if I turn up to see my GP with "My daughter's ballet teacher says her feet have a tendency to roll inwards"!!

Any stories? Is it just correctable in time?

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piratecat · 30/03/2011 15:48

how old is she?

have you noticed it before?

my dd had the same, but worse on one side but it was very apparent from toddlerhood (they can roll in when really small as not formed properly and very soft) and she was hard to buy shoes for.

gp would be first port of call then you'd get a referral to pediatric orthopedics.

Original poster

cordyblue · 30/03/2011 16:51

Thank you

I haven't noticed it before, but now it's obvious, which is strange - it's almost just suddenly crept up.

DD is 8 and has high insteps like me. Googling, I am certain this has something to do with it and perhaps it just wasn't obvious before.

GP during the holidays I think!

Thank you :-)

OP posts:

suzikettles · 30/03/2011 16:57

Ds has this and I'm about to make an appointment with the GP about it.

I've always thought his gait wasn't quite the same as other children his age but put it down to different children developing at different rates. It was a shoe fitter who pointed it out and when she got him to walk towards us barefoot it was quite obvious.

She said he'd probably grow out of it (was 3 at the time) but if he hadn't by the time he started school then it would be worth seeing someone about it. He's 4 now and still has a lot of pronation (which is apparently the term) so I'm going to see if he should be referred.

cory · 30/03/2011 17:19

Whether it is correctable or whether you grow out of it or whether it causes permanent problems will depend on the individual child and what is causing it.

Dd and I both have pronating feet due to hypermobility syndrome, hasn't caused me any problems (apart from shoes wearing down awkwardly), but she has had a lot of ankle pain and difficulty walking. There are things that help though: insoles, physio, occupational therapy.

But in some children pronation is just a toddler thing thing that they grow out of.

piratecat · 30/03/2011 17:53

hmm yes your dd is deffo different to mine, mine had flat feet with the pronation. not fixed flat feet ( she had an arch if on tiptoe).

TimeForMeIsFree · 30/03/2011 18:43

My DD has just been measured and fitted with inserts for her shoes to correct the same problem. According to the physiotherapist it is important it is corrected so as to align the knee and hip, if the feet are rolling inwards then pressure is put on the joints. So yes, I would say have a word with your GP and ask to be referred.

Original poster

cordyblue · 30/03/2011 18:50

Thank you so much, everyone.

I will make that appointment this holiday. She is 8 and a half, and it seems odd that it's only become noticeably now, but I do think I ought to get it checked out. DD's ballet teacher mentioned it a few lessons ago, and then actually stopped me the other day and basically said to do something! I'm not sure DD's ballet teacher is bothered about anything other than it not making a perfect turn-out position !!! I do hope a consultant is not going to warn us away from ballet, as actually DD is very good at it and has progressed incredibly well. But she also does lots of swimming and riding - luckily, feet turnout not absolutely crucial for those I guess!!!

OP posts:

TimeForMeIsFree · 30/03/2011 19:27

My DD is 8 and a half too!! It was only noticed because she had a swollen knee which was found to be rheumatoid arthritis and so needed physio.

Original poster

cordyblue · 31/03/2011 09:54

Appointment made! I hope it's not something I need/should to go through BUPA with as we're still in our first year with them. Will ask GP's advice on that.

Thank you :-)

OP posts:

TimeForMeIsFree · 31/03/2011 21:09

I wouldn't worry cordyblue, talking to other mums about the foot condition it does seem to be quite common but unless a child is suffering from something which brings attention to it it generally goes unnoticed. I hope everything goes well for you

Marne · 31/03/2011 21:13

Best to get it checked out, dd2 (5) has in turning feet and flat feet, Gp an Physio kept telling me its a part of her Autism and theres nothing they can do, now her legs and hips are turning , she now has to do excersizes to try and improve her legs/hips.

Milliways · 31/03/2011 22:02

Marne-are your DDs legs rotating progressively?

I had "inward rotating femurs" that had to be surgically corrected at age 7, but can walk perfectly with full range of movement now (although I still lean over my ankles, but that is purely cosmetic and causes no problem other than wearing down heels quicker on the inside, but no-one notices anything).

(Surgery is rarely needed, only saying in case you are ever faced with it. Apparently my parents agonised over the decision, but mine was so progressive I would have been permanently wheel-chair bound from age 10, but problem was noticeable from age 2)

Marne · 01/04/2011 13:46

Both dd's have the same problem, dd1 walks almost on her ankles but her legs are not to bad, dd2's feet are not as bad (but maybe because they are so wide) but where her legs and hips turn she often trips over her own feet, she is seeing Occupational therapist who have told me to get her to sit with her legs crossed as she tends to sit in odd positions with her legs open and turning outwards, i'm hoping it wont get any worse and she won't need surgery. Physio said its very comon with children with Autism as they develop their own style of walking and odd postures. She fell over this morning on the way into school and twister her ankle/foot.

Milliways · 01/04/2011 19:11

Yes, I used to sit in the "W" position which is classic with that problem, and doesn't help it apparently. My Mum was always telling me to shift!

Hope your OT gets things sorted. I was in the unlucky small % that needed surgery, but I was totally knock kneed by age 5 and tripping constantly by age 7 - when they did the correction, so it was extreme. A lot of kids can wear orthotics to help hold the foot correctly.

Marne · 01/04/2011 20:09

Thanks Milliways, her kness do knock slightly, i hope it doesn't get any worse i can't imagine having to go through surgery .

crazycarol · 01/04/2011 22:31

DD was diagnosed with this plus flat feet at about age 8. She has specially moulded inserts for her shoes as otherwise if not corrected it can cause problems with knees & hips.

OrangeBernard · 01/04/2011 22:36

Dd has this, turns out she's hypermobile. See a doctor. Our physiology didn't give her insoles, just advised swimming to build the muscle round the joint, and wearing supportive shoes, not wellies, cross or plimsolls

Jellykat · 01/04/2011 23:16

DS2 (now 13) has this, plus Hypermobility, we initially saw a Physio, but now regularly see a biomechanical Podiatrist, who checks and measures his moulded insoles.

My DS2 has really bad knee problems,and has to wear shoes that support his ankles, recently he has seen a Orthopaedic consultant-with MRI scans on his legs etc.. but he has it pretty badly.

Best to get it checked, if there is anything wrong there's a lot of help out there.

chloesmumtoo · 05/04/2011 11:12

yeah my ds had Hypermobility or hyper flexic/flat feet so many terms. I have to say in my ds's case it never went away. It was found at 3yrs and now he is a teenager and been struck off from his physio because of numbers! As from young he had alot of pain and so I do believe the excercises given must have helped. However, we were never advised to have insoles at that stage, as it makes the muscles work less and they incouraged him to strengthen his by excercise instead. He went through varients of pain in ankles,heels and knees all to do with growth. It does effect him, if he was to do to much physical excercise but gets by very well, better than I ever imagined. They did say before we had to leave the physio that if he was going down the ten tours route then it would be different and worth thinking of seeing podiatrist and getting insoles/shoes but thats the first time she really acted like it was an option dependant on his interests at 14 yrs. I dont think ballet should be a problem cordyblue as a routine excercise was walking on tip toes

mankyscotslass · 05/04/2011 11:30

DD has Hypermobility, flat feet and Excessive femoral Ante-version in her right leg. They are talking about surgery before she is a teenager.

She wears insiles, which have really helped with everyday stuff, now she has the ones that were moulded to her feet, not the generic ones.

DS" is now 5 and I have noticed he is very flatfooted on his right foot, and intoes on it, though not as severely as dd.

This thread has given me a kick up the backside, and i am off to get an app at the doctors for him once the holidays start.

He loves football, and goes to coaching, but is not the best. Does anyone know how this moght impact on him playing?

Original poster

cordyblue · 05/04/2011 21:12

Right well, my GP (not my usual one) said it was "just the way she is built" and unless it's causing her pain or discomfort, his advice was to do absolutely nothing and just deal with that being the way she stands/walks...

WTF??

I also did the typical middle class mother thing and agreed with him at the time, and even went so far as to apologise for wasting his time.

Is this normal??? Am I okay not to do anything as long as it's not causing her pain?

OP posts:

Milliways · 05/04/2011 21:42

If they just roll inward, then personally I would leave it (as long as feet & legs are straight).

I had leg postioning changed, and queried my rolling ankles as I got older and was told it could be corrected, but would be extremely painful to have stuff cut in the foot for a purely cosmetic purpose. It is just a dropped muscle or similar. I had had enough with the hip surgery/spica frame and even now I would not go back and have it done as a separate operation.

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