In-Toeing

Does your infant or young child seem to in-toe? In-toeing is a common condition in children and stems from several different conditions. One of these is called metatarsus adductus. One of the hallmarks of metatarsus adductus is the appearance of the foot. Your child’s foot will be convex on the outside and concave on the inside. This shape is often referred to as the C shaped foot.

There are different levels of metatarsus adductus, ranging from mild to severe. Many people have a little bit of this form of in-toeing and will never realize it. However in the moderate and severe cases it can cause a great deal of pain while walking as well as being uncomfortable in any type of shoe gear.

So, what can we do for this condition? Well, it used to be believed that a parent could manipulate their child’s foot by holding it in a certain position for several seconds each night. This is kind of like the idea of pushing against your teeth to straighten them out. The reality is that these techniques are not guaranteed to work for your children. A much more tried and true technique is casting. Your podiatrist will apply casts to hold your foot in a corrected position for a couple of weeks and with about 3 casts your child’s foot will be corrected. After this, your kid can use a brace to keep them in this position. If your child fails this treatment or is too old, they may need surgery. The surgery will serve to place their foot in the corrected position and give them relief.

So, if you or someone you know has a child with in-toeing, you should seek help from your podiatrist. If you live in the Dracut or Wesford, Massachusetts area, Dr. Wachtel would be more than happy to see you and help determine the cause of your child’s in-toeing. We are also happy to announce our Methuen and North Andover offices located at 451 Andover St. Suite 300, North Andover MA 01845 and 87 Jackson St, Methuen, MA 01835.