Hello I just had a baby that has club feet I just wanted to know other people's experiances. What is the prognosis and general treatment? Why would a dr. cast past the knee to help the ankle? How long does treatment usually last? Is it normal for the baby to be very upset following casting for days? Any info is greatly appreciated.
You cannot possible get a sufficient number of inputs from those who themselves had or had children who needed a clubfoot correction to have anything approaching a meaningful understanding of the likely outcomes. Because of human nature and they type of folks who may reply with their personal stories, you are far more likely to hear either horror stories or those results on the far end in either direction than to hear results which you might reasonably expect for your child. As always, the best source of information regarding any procedure that one has had should be the doctor whom you trusted to perform it in the first place, not only because he/she knows exactly what was done, but knows the precise nature of the initial problem. What you are asking for is more likely to confuse then help you.
Landsinmom, I am a mother of a child who is now 3.5 months old with clubfoot and I did ample research on this issue and live with it every day and also talk with others who are in the same circumstance. Typically, a child will need a few castings (aprox. 6-8), once per week or bi-weekly, until a certain level of correction is attained in the feet. The casts must be applied over the knees and up to the groin area simply to help aid in the correction and prevent slippage. Your baby may handle casting well...or may not. Mine did not handle well the first casting...then he was ok with them since he was used to it. After casting your child may need a small surgical procedure to cut a tendon in the ankle to help the foot with lift and stretching, then a last cast is put on when that heals. Sometimes this tenonomy is not required. Next comes a bar brace which will need to be worn for 23 hours a day for at least 3 months, then at night past that time, with a gradual lessening of worn time until about 4 years of age. They tell me this will not affect crawling or walking at all. If you want to write me personally, my addy is Watergazer@Comcast.net
With all due respects to the assured well-meaningness of the mother of the child born with clubfoot, her post PRECISELY epitomizes the point made in MY response. Here we have a mother who has all of less than 3 1/2 months experience with the condition and treatment of clubfoot and its often life-time sequelae, and she is not only sarcastically disdainful of a rational professional opinion cautioning you to the pitfalls of putting much credence into the recitation of such lay anecdotal experiences, but offers treatment plans based on her exceedingly short-term experience without having ANY idea of the degree of severity of your child's condition or what the doctor whom YOU have chosen to treat has in mind. If one could become an expert by all of 3 months "research" (terming it "ample"), then why in the world would one have to study, be trained, become licensed and practice for years to be able to provide these services to the public.
Of course, though having a doctor whom you have personally engaged, yet having either not directed your question to him/her or haven't chosen one whose answers you are willing to trust, you are no doubt pleased with such an all-knowing unequivocal response, but remember that I warned you if and when your own doctor has other plans and you get all confused and irritated. I would certainly recommend that you do your own research . . but for GOD SAKE, not from lay comments on the Internet or even from professional ones, the quality of the source of which you have no means of determining.
Those who might think that I am opening this up for a verbal battle will likely be disappointed.
__________________ Foot Doc
Last edited by FootDoc; 2nd October 2008 at 06:57 PM.
question, are people permitted to comment on this forum or is it for the dr answer only, thank you?
Of course, the forum is open to comment from anyone (including doctors) who posts in accordance with the Forum rules as promulgated by the Administrator. The relevance of my post, which obvious promoted your question, should be seen in the context of the post to which I had replied, in which that poster found it necessary to prefix his/her response to my initial post to landismon with inappropriate sarcasm in offering
"Wow doc, nice reply there, lots of help..."
No one need take my or anyone else's advice, but if one disagrees with my opinion or has an alternate opinion, then one should simply come out and state his/her case, to which I may either agree or offer rebuttal. But such sarcasm as had been employed and directed at me is not likely to go un-responded to by me. By the same token, if I disagree with someone else's opinion or motives, I will so state and give my reasons. Had the poster not include his/her sarcasm, I would not have found it necessary to defend the advice offered in my original post. That being said, I repeat that I have no intention of turning this issue into a battle.
__________________ Foot Doc
Last edited by FootDoc; 4th October 2008 at 06:15 AM.
hi everyone. I almost dont feel comfortable commenting because I am not a doctor and I do not want to be attacked. I do however want to offer some comfort. I had bilateral club feet when I was born. At the time, it was fairly new and thereore many assumptions were made regarding the success rate of surgery regarding the club feet. My poor mother was told it may be possible that I will never walk or best case scenario I will walk a little funny. I am now 23 years old I started walking independently when I was about 4 years old. I had 6 surgurys (3 on each foot). My calfs are a little smaller than the rest of my body but I am surely not complaining. I danced my entire life after surgury. I was on a competition dance team and competed in ice skating and gymnastics as well. Over all, I turned out just fine. I still have my little tiny casts...very cute. I hope this offers a little bit of comfort this is just my experience. Not my opinion but my personal experience.
The foot doc is right that YOUR doctor is the one who knows most, but if you had to come into a forum to get information your doctor is not doing his/her job. You did not know why the cast went past the knee, what to expect during treatment, etc., and politely asked for info here.
They could have at least given you some written information to take home and read; a lot of times people focus on a particular comment made or reaction of their baby during treatment, and don't recall everything they are told during the appointment.
Make a list of questions, and by all means do your own research. Treatment of clubfeet has come a long way and an informed family does much better all around.
Last edited by kpetit; 31st December 2008 at 04:52 PM.
Hi Landsinmom,
first i can assured you not to worry.it is curable. and your baby will start to run as a noramal baby.
My daughter is now 2,5yrs old.
At the time of her birth we came know that she is having CTEV for both the legs.we were shocked.
On the third day treatment was started. casting had done for 4 times in the gap of 15-20 days.for last (4th)casting she had some small cut in the ancle for lifting and stretching the foot.
After that was she put on splint shooes .which she had to wear 23 hrs for 3 months. afetr that she is wearning in the night only.
when she started to walk as per nomal baby she put on shoes which is specially made for CTEV kids.
doctor told me that she has to wear up to 4yr or 5yrs of age.
Now she is 2.5yrs old and walk and run as noraml kid.
so dont wory be hppy.
and enjoy the parenting.
everything will be alright.
you can mail me at luv_chiu@yahoo.com
I know that you mean well, and I'm happy that things worked out so nicely for your child . . as they may, too, for Landsinmon's. But anecdotal tales such as yours, while they certainly can be a source of comfort to the parents, do not necessarily reflect what any other individual may experience, and for that matter, what may be determined as appropriate treatment by an individual's doctor based on the specifics and nuances of the case. If you were aiming merely at support, I think that has probably been achieved. But if your intent was to offer information on which Landsinmom might rely as applying to her child's treatment or prognosis, I think that you have not done her a service. All too often, patients and parents of patients, through their generally one experience, mistakenly believe that identical procedures are appropriate for others and identical or similar results can be expected. Chances are that you would not have felt comfortable knowing that your child's case was only the second of its kind that your doctor treated. Though I am certainly critical of YOUR efforts here, my comments are really directed at those who might in the future contemplate reporting such anecdotal comments with such an assurance, as did you, that it necessarily applies to others.
I was born with club foot on the left. Every week my foot was rebroken and then caster then i had surgery when at 10 months. Throught my childhood i was very active as I continure to do so. Have not had problems with it all. My calf muscle has always been a lot smaller then my right calf and i have always been made fun of for that. I cannot curl my toes or rotate my foot that much. In addition my left leg is 1.5 inches shorter from the hip. My thigh is 1.5 inches smaller. Calf is 1.75" smaller. I read posts that the calf muscle is smaller. Will I be able to change that if I continue to work it out?
Hi,
I just had my 20 week anomaly scan and it is noticed that my baby is having isolated club foot in the right leg. All other structures are normal for my baby.I am totally devastated after hearing this as I was expecting our perfect first baby.Both in my husband's family and in mine have no history of club foot or other genetic disorders.I consulted my doctor and she says it is completely curable and no need to go for karyotyping as there is no other abnormality seen in the scan.Also I had done Nuchal(I think this is the spelling) scan at 12th week for screening Down's syndrom and that scan was perfect. Still i am very much worried.I am not able to sleep or concentrate thinking on this.Can my baby be normal as all other baby.Is this curable? Can I know the severity of club foot before birth? i heard the positional club foot is easily curable.How can I know my baby's is positional or structural.I am sorry I am asking too many questions..but i am totally upset.please help me
I am absolutely amazed that no one has mentioned the magnificent work and success that has been achieved by the Ponsetti method of treatring the juvenile club foot.
This process may involve serial casting, maybe a tenotomy and then the use of Dennis Boots and a variety of splint options. This method is now widely used at least in the USA, Australia, New Zealand and the UK.
I suggest you google "Ponseti method" and there is a whole raft of research data availble for this treatment. This includes chatter on "Podiatry Arena"
I'm 14 years old, my name is Connor Sirovy, Im from Iowa. When i was born i was born with club feet. I went through the cast as a baby. I had 16 cast overall, i got a new one each week then i got a surgery. Since this day i have had over 20 casts and 4 surgery's. i am in terrible pain every day of my life... if you have any ?'s about a good hospital or anything about club feet you can Contact me... My E-Mail is Sirovy2014@gmail.com Please only contact me if it is about club feet!
I am saddened by the fact that a fourteen year old has to be the one to initiate the search for care for his clubfoot. As a professional, I cannot get involved with medical advice to or the care of a minor without the verifiable consent of a parent or guardian.
My granddaughter is almost 4 years old and was born with a clubb foot. She had a wonderful doctor who took care of her. She had to wear a cast at first and then a brace. She looks perfectly normal. She runs and plays and if you didn't know her history you would never know she was born with a clubb foot. If your child is born with a clubb foot get a good doctor and follow his or her directions to the letter and you could have a very good outcome.
Hello I just had a baby that has club feet I just wanted to know other people's experiances. What is the prognosis and general treatment? Why would a dr. cast past the knee to help the ankle? How long does treatment usually last? Is it normal for the baby to be very upset following casting for days? Any info is greatly appreciated.
hi my name is holly and i have club feet, i am 22 years old and have had 22 operations and i'm going for my 23rd. when i was little they did a surgery where they turned my feet around properly, this was followed by many operations such as stretching tendants, removing bones, and switching things around to work. the worst thing i ever had done was having my ankle fused.. it only helped temporaraly.. than i found my ankle became stressed because i always felt the need to crack my foot because it felt stiff. so i finally got tired of it and asked them to remove my ankle, but they told me that they never done it before, well i had the surgery and it took me 6 months to learn how to walk again. it was the best thing they ever did for my right foot. i continue to have problems with both feet, but when you have this disability it will never go away no matter what surgeries i have, it just helps relieve pain where i have it. tendants will always need to be stretched as a child grows even into adult hood. surgeries will help the person with the disability better when they get older, because they will be able to tell the doctor where it hurts and how it hurts, the surgeries are scary and hard but they will continue throughout life, but having a supportive family really helps. i always had obstickles to get around such as sports and things i wanted to do like other people, but no matter what their are always different ways of doing all those things, but the child has to find their way. growing up i always needed that extra push when i felt like i couldn't do it anymore, or when i was in too much pain or too stressed. the pain never completely goes away from walking with this disability , but you learn how to cope with it and you always know your own limits.
I can offer my own relatively long-term story. . .
My right foot only was affected. I was put in a cast at 1 day old, and remained in casts (not the same one) for the first nine months of my life. I wore a brace for some 6 months after that at least; and part time for a long time thereafter. The folks say that I learned to walk in spite of the brace. My parents DILIGENTLY massaged and stretched my foot every night for years -- until I was 7 or 8. I wore orthopedic shoes until I was 12, at which point I had corrective surgery. I so wish I knew more about the surgery. All I can say is that it did not involve my Achilles tendon, but it did relax the ever-increasing arch in my foot. After that I was able to wear, albeit somewhat uncomfortably, normal shoes. My surgeon gave my parents credit for my avoiding Achilles tendon surgery with their enthusiastic physical therapy (although as a kid, I often felt they went overboard with it).
I am 50 now. My right ankle has little rotation, is stiff, and having a club foot has prevented me from being a runner (Achilles still too short); I have never been able to wear cute between-the-toe thong-type sandals; and. . . well, I guess that's all. My point is, my life has been, for all practical purposes, unaffected by this disability, such as it is for me (although as a teenage the sandals thing really tee'd me off).
Until now. I am starting to have pain in my ankle whenever I am active for long periods of time -- walking on uneven terrain is the big problem if I'm not wearing boots with really good ankle support, and even that isn't reliable. I stumbled on this thread looking for a group where I can ask others if they are experiencing anything similar. I suspect that, even if they are, it isn't serious because I cannot find such a group.
So, depending on the severity of your child's condition and their development thereafter, it will likely always be an issue in his/her life, but won't necessarily dictate the quality and/or outcomes of it.
I found this site while looking for information on adults with corrected club feet and late sequellae. At 62, I have now begun to have more serious problems. Born with a club foot, I was in a brace or cast as an infant, then a cast from walking until the age of 10. At 10 I believe I had a medial release and bones "frozen" in place. I wore a cast, then a high top shoe with a leg bar for two years with a night shoe and bar brace. (My father was an orthopedic surgeon, and I was treated at a University Hospital.)
Never a fast runner as a child, and never really able to graduate beyond the green ski trails, I've been quite active all my life until now. However, over forty years the pain has slowly increased. The result of my club foot and the treatment I had is the extensive arthritis that I experience. I have pain if I am on my feet too much of the day. Wearing high heels is almost impossible. I can't walk three miles more than two or three times a week. Exercise is a real challenge. Yoga and weight lifting have proved too much for me. At Christmas my foot got very swollen and painful without a precipitating event. I thought it was just wear and that rest would take care of it as it has in the past; however, the pain continued. An MRI from yesterday noted marked extensive arthritis and probable peroneal brevis tendon tear among other things.
I am worried about my continued mobility and independence. I developed lower extremity bilateral lymphedema after treatment for gynecologic cancer and am concerned about what is really possible for me regarding surgery. There's little out there to read about the care of post-treatment club foot in adults.
I'd love to here if any medical centers or universities have identified this as a problem to treat.
hiya, my name is bella, i am 15 years old
i was born with a club foot, my right. when i was younger i had it operated on i wore a full cast for 6 months. i have a size 6 foot my left and a size 5 foot my right this makes it difficult for buying shoes. i now wear an insole and have to do physiotherapy. recently i have been having pains around my ankle and on the innerside of my foot, i dont know why this is but it makes it a struggle to walk and stand.
i hope someone can help
thanks
i am 21 years old and was born with a club foot... i was wondering if steriods can help my smaller leg develop muscle because my leg with the club foot has no calf muscle.....
hiya, my name is bella, i am 15 years old
i was born with a club foot, my right. when i was younger i had it operated on i wore a full cast for 6 months. i have a size 6 foot my left and a size 5 foot my right this makes it difficult for buying shoes. i now wear an insole and have to do physiotherapy. recently i have been having pains around my ankle and on the innerside of my foot, i dont know why this is but it makes it a struggle to walk and stand.
i hope someone can help
thanks
hiya im emily and i also have a club foot, but my left (: i have size 37 and size 40. im 17 and i've been having bad pains too.. burning sensation. is your foot also stiff? did you get operated on too? i hope you answer, its nice to know that im not the only one (:
Hi! I'm Werner from Germany and I was born with a (left) clubfoot myself. I also found it hard to find information on "older clubfooters" instead of sites which mostly focus on parents, therefore some people from the clubfoot.co.uk-board and myself started a group on facebook (adults / teens with clubfoot). Everybody affected by clubfoot is of course welcome and hopefully finds help there as well... Hope this "advertising" is ok...
HI my name is Erica im and I was born with clubfeet I had many surgery to correct my feet when I was a baby. Now im 18 and I only have a little pain in both feet once in a blue moon, the problems that I really have are stiffness in my feet and they are smaller then normal. And my right heel doesnt touch the ground when I stand up straight also my calf muscle are really small its like I have toothpick legs lol but it dosent brother me cause im skinny so it kinda matches my body lol.But beacuse my feet are so stiff i cant were high heels and as a young women that really upsets me so I was wondering if there is a way to fix the stiffness in me feet so my feet can be more flexable so i can wear high heels.
There is absolutely no way that anyone on a forum where you cannot be examined could possibly responsibly answer your question. I would advise that you contact a hospital with affiliation to a good medical school or one renowned for its excellent orthopedic/podiatric staff and work for advice as to who to see about this. I would also advise getting more than one opinion
I just found this site, and have read through the entire thread before replying, so keep that in mind. First, I'll tell you about myself: I am 58, and was born with the most severe case of bi-lateral talipes equino varus doctors at the Detroit Orthopedic Clinic had ever seen. I have been through the entire works - serial casting, night splints, twister straps (oh, did I hate those) and have always had to have my shoes custom made - I have never bought any foot wear at a store except for slippers. I have had many subsequent foot pain and function issues ever since. Now, to my qualifications for responding to some of the existing posts here:
I have 20+ years in the field of biomechanics, have lectured on related issues such as limb length discrepancy and rocker sole therapy, as well as general shoe and foot orthoses issues; I contributed two chapters to a lower extremity biomechanics text book; I owned and operated show therapy and orthotic labs, founded an orthotic lab association, and have been a consultant on numerous clinical cases related to foot deformity issues. So, that said:
I find the responses from Foot Doctor to be not only disrespectful to the posters who have put forward questions here, but self-serving as well. Are you simply trying to coerce people into making an appointment with you? If so, your sales pitch needs lots of work. I thought this was a forum where people with real and often painful questions could come to get some feedback. If so, you, Foot Doctor, are clearly not helping.
This is my feedback to the other posters, especially those whose child has club feet/foot. While there are lots of methods for dealing with club feet in a child, there are two things woefully lacking:
1. There has not been, to my knowledge, a single long-term study of the outcomes of any method used to date, that is, 10, 20, 30 years post surgical/treatments, to prove or disprove the effectiveness of such procedures. I have conducted nearly a dozen MedLine searches for such literature, with zero results. I find this appalling, at the least. That clinicians urge one or another approach for responding to this deformity, without having any study on the long-term outcomes, is absurd.
2. Studies into adult, post-clubfoot surgery/treatment therapies. Contrary to what most surgeons like to tell parents, their child will, especially in cases that required surgical intervention, have some long term issues. These might range from foot cramps and fatigue, to severe foot pain on walking, and in some instances, may be linked (only anecdotally at this point) with degenerative disk disease, where clubfoot/feet resulted in (an often undiagnosed) limb length discrepancy. This will place greater compensatory stresses on the pelvis and spine over time, and may not be noticed for many years, most likely decades, and then may be more difficult to link to the original cause.
Please note, my aim isn't to upset anyone, it is to bring some long-overdue reality to the situation we, as adults with club feet/foot face or are likely to face as we age. After many years trying to find answers to these very questions, I find myself with not many adequate answers. Mostly, my questions at this point are, why so little research has been done.
And Foot Doctor? If you cannot add anything constructive, please don't add anything at all. I think my own credentials will suffice should you have a response.
WOW . . What meaningless, uninteligible word salad drivel
Quote:
Originally Posted by Notumbo
I contributed two chapters to a lower extremity biomechanics text book
Surely you would have given your name, the title of the book and the chapters and mention of a degree of some kind.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Notumbo
I owned and operated show therapy and orthotic labs, founded an orthotic lab association, and have been a consultant on numerous clinical cases related to foot deformity issues.
SHOW THERAPY?? ORTHOTIC LAB ASSOCIATION?? CONSULTANT WITHOUT A DEGREE??
Quote:
Originally Posted by Notumbo
I find the responses from Foot Doctor to be not only disrespectful to the posters who have put forward questions here, but self-serving as well. Are you simply trying to coerce people into making an appointment with you?
Rather difficult to solicit patients without ever giving one's name or location.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Notumbo
This is my feedback to the other posters, especially those whose child has club feet/foot. While there are lots of methods for dealing with club feet in a child, there are two things woefully lacking:
1. There has not been, to my knowledge, a single long-term study of the outcomes of any method used to date, that is, 10, 20, 30 years post surgical/treatments, to prove or disprove the effectiveness of such procedures. I have conducted nearly a dozen MedLine searches for such literature, with zero results. I find this appalling, at the least. That clinicians urge one or another approach for responding to this deformity, without having any study on the long-term outcomes, is absurd.
2. Studies into adult, post-clubfoot surgery/treatment therapies. Contrary to what most surgeons like to tell parents, their child will, especially in cases that required surgical intervention, have some long term issues. These might range from foot cramps and fatigue, to severe foot pain on walking, and in some instances, may be linked (only anecdotally at this point) with degenerative disk disease, where clubfoot/feet resulted in (an often undiagnosed) limb length discrepancy. This will place greater compensatory stresses on the pelvis and spine over time, and may not be noticed for many years, most likely decades, and then may be more difficult to link to the original cause.
Please note, my aim isn't to upset anyone, it is to bring some long-overdue reality to the situation we, as adults with club feet/foot face or are likely to face as we age. After many years trying to find answers to these very questions, I find myself with not many adequate answers. Mostly, my questions at this point are, why so little research has been done
So after all that wordy crap you conclude that you don't have any answers and haven't found any. Now THAT'S helpful!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Notumbo
And Foot Doctor? If you cannot add anything constructive, please don't add anything at all
Based on the fact that you've used far too many words to say that you have no answers, it would seem appropriate that you take your own advice.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Notumbo
I think my own credentials will suffice should you have a response
I don't even know what that means . . "your own credentials will suffice should I have a response". Unsupported claims of expertise, especially when you have offered nothing of value here to those whom you claim to want to help is not the same as credentials. If YOU have something of value to add, then do so. But don't come here ranting and raving and adding nothing but criticism.
__________________ Foot Doc
Last edited by FootDoc; 26th April 2010 at 04:11 AM.
I think your response indicates the statement I have made - I did not give my real name for the same reason I suppose you have not given yours. Since "show" is a typo, it deserves no response beyond that.
Clearly, this is not the proper venue for someone seeking input on their club feet/foot problems without being slammed. If you are willing to reveal your true name and CV, I will be happy to do the same.
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