Elsevier

The Foot

Volume 6, Issue 1, March 1996, Pages 1-4
The Foot

Review article
In-toeing gait in children. A review of the literature

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0958-2592(96)90051-6Get rights and content

Abstract

In-toeing gait in children is a common cause for parental concern. 30% of children in-toe at the age of 4 years but the condition persists in only 4% of adults. In conditions causing in-toeing, the lower limb may compensate at a number of levels; the knee joint; within the tibial bone; or within the subtalar joint of the foot. Resolution of in-toeing usually occurs spontaneously between the ages of 4 and 11 years unless a structural abnormality of the foot or leg exists. The vast majority of rotational variations fall within the broad range of normal, requiring no treatment.

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  • Cited by (11)

    • Compensatory mechanisms in children with idiopathic lower extremity internal rotational malalignment during walking and running

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      Additionally, depending on the compensatory mechanism, they may cause non-physiological loading which may lead to overuse and pain in different structures and tissues of the body. Not all patients with increased femoral anteversion and tibial internal torsion have a noticeable in-toeing gait [11,12]. Rather, in-toeing gait may depend on the degree and level of rotational deformity.

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      Because not all of the participants agreed to sign the consent form for 3D gait analysis, foot progression data were insufficient for statistical analysis. Besides, some studies revealed that IFA children do not necessarily have a noticeable in-toeing gait [29–31]. Different than IFA, compensatory movements for toe-in gait may have other relation to functional problems which should be investigated in future.

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