Clubfoot
Clubfoot
Definition:
A clubfoot is a congenital deformity involving one foot or both. The affected foot looks like it has been rotated internally at the ankle. Without treatment, people with club feet often appear to walk on their ankles or on the sides of their feet.
It is a relatively common birth defect, occurring in about one in every 1,000 live births. Approximately half of people with clubfoot have it affect both feet, which are called bilateral club foot. In most cases it is an isolated dysmelia (disorder of the limbs). It occurs in males twice as frequently as in females.
Also Known as: Giles Smith Syndrome, Talipes Equinovarus, Talipes
Cause of club foot
Despite a great deal of study, the exact cause of club foot in isolation (not as part of a syndrome or other birth defect) is unknown. There have been some indications of a genetic cause, but these haven’t been confirmed. Most children who are born with a club foot don’t have a family history of the condition.
What is known is that if a baby boy has a club foot, there’s a 2.5 percent chance that his next-born sibling will have club foot, too. If a girl baby has a club foot, there’s a 6.5 percent chance that her next-born sibling will also have a club foot.
Risk Factor
Risk factors may include:
• A family history of club foot
• Genetic syndromes, such as Edwards syndrome (trisomy 18)
• Neuromuscular disorders, such as cerebral palsy (CP) and spina bifida
• Oligohydramnios (a decreased amount of amniotic fluid surrounding the fetus in the uterus) during pregnancy
Babies born with club foot may also be at increased risk of having an associated hip condition, developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH). In DDH, the top of the thigh bone (femur) slips in and out of its socket because the socket is too shallow to keep the joint intact.
Signs and symptoms
• The heel points downward, and the front half of the foot turns inward.
• The calf muscles on the affected side are smaller than on the
Definition:
A clubfoot is a congenital deformity involving one foot or both. The affected foot looks like it has been rotated internally at the ankle. Without treatment, people with club feet often appear to walk on their ankles or on the sides of their feet.
It is a relatively common birth defect, occurring in about one in every 1,000 live births. Approximately half of people with clubfoot have it affect both feet, which are called bilateral club foot. In most cases it is an isolated dysmelia (disorder of the limbs). It occurs in males twice as frequently as in females.
Also Known as: Giles Smith Syndrome, Talipes Equinovarus, Talipes
Cause of club foot
Despite a great deal of study, the exact cause of club foot in isolation (not as part of a syndrome or other birth defect) is unknown. There have been some indications of a genetic cause, but these haven’t been confirmed. Most children who are born with a club foot don’t have a family history of the condition.
What is known is that if a baby boy has a club foot, there’s a 2.5 percent chance that his next-born sibling will have club foot, too. If a girl baby has a club foot, there’s a 6.5 percent chance that her next-born sibling will also have a club foot.
Risk Factor
Risk factors may include:
• A family history of club foot
• Genetic syndromes, such as Edwards syndrome (trisomy 18)
• Neuromuscular disorders, such as cerebral palsy (CP) and spina bifida
• Oligohydramnios (a decreased amount of amniotic fluid surrounding the fetus in the uterus) during pregnancy
Babies born with club foot may also be at increased risk of having an associated hip condition, developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH). In DDH, the top of the thigh bone (femur) slips in and out of its socket because the socket is too shallow to keep the joint intact.
Signs and symptoms
• The heel points downward, and the front half of the foot turns inward.
• The calf muscles on the affected side are smaller than on the