Can babies born with bent legs be cured?

Have you heard of clubfoot do newborns usually experience? The baby's feet are experiencingclubfoot not straight, but bends inward and even upside down. So, what causes crooked legs in babies and can this condition be cured?

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What causes crooked legs in babies?

Source: NHS

Clubfoot is another term for clubfoot or crooked leg in babies. This is a type of birth defect that occurs in the muscles and bones of a baby's leg.

Clubfoot or crooked legs in babies usually have the following symptoms:

• The soles of the baby's feet are at the bottom or inward as if they are rotating.
• Legs appear inverted.
• The legs look shorter than they should be.
• The leg muscles are poorly developed.
• The calf muscles in the legs are usually poorly developed.
• Inward arched legs and heels.
• If it occurs on one leg, it will be different in length from the other leg.

The cause of crooked legs in babies is not known with certainty.

However, a combination of genetic and environmental factors is thought to be the cause of crooked legs in infants orclubfoot.

So, if you give birth to a child with crooked legs, you have another chance of having a child with the same condition.

In fact, if you experience this yourself, you run the risk of passing on this condition to your baby later.

The opportunity for your little one to experienceclubfoot also can be greater if you and your partner experience it.

In addition, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine, crooked legs can also be due to the short size of the Achilles tendon.

The Achilles tendon is located behind the ankle, which connects the calf to the heel.

The shortened size of the Achilles tendon causes the leg to rotate inward and downward.

Treatment options for crooked legs in babies

Treatment for children with crooked legs can be in two ways, namely non-surgery and surgery (surgery).

For clarity, let's discuss the types of treatment for crooked baby feet below.

1. Non-surgical treatment

This is the initial treatment for clubfoot in children regardless of the condition is severe or not. This treatment is called the ponseti method.

This treatment is carried out using special tools that can stretch the muscles and bones.

Gradually, this method can improve bone deformities.

The stages of treatment of the ponseti method that children must follow include:

Manipulating and casting

The baby's feet will be stretched gently and directed into the correct position. The process will take about 6-8 weeks.

Generally, treatment with this technique is carried out 1-2 weeks after the baby is born.

Achilles tenotomy

To bring the foot into its normal shape, a tenotomy procedure is performed by cutting the Achilles tendon (the tendon in the heel).

After that, the baby's feet will be in a temporary cast for 3 weeks. In some cases, the baby's bent leg has completely healed.

Bracing

Even though it looks healed, the leg can bend again. Therefore, bracing necessary to ensure that the foot remains in the correct position.

The baby will be put on brace (boots that are attached to each other so as not to move) for 3-4 years to maintain the position of the feet.

Babies are advised to usebraces about 23 hours a day for 2 consecutive months.

After that,bracesstill should be worn for 12 hours a day until your little one is 4-5 years old or starting school in kindergarten.

2. Surgical treatment (surgery)

Although non-surgical treatment is successful, sometimes the deformity of the crooked leg in babies is not completely corrected.

If this happens, surgery will be recommended to repair the tendons (tendons), ligaments, joints in the feet and ankles.

Surgery is performed by lifting the Achilles tendon at the back of the ankle or moving the tendon that leads the foot into the correct position.

This procedure is called an anterior tibial tendon transfer. Furthermore, major reconstructive surgery will also be carried out.

This surgery will remove some of the soft tissue structures of the foot. After that, the joints of the feet are stabilized using long pins and casts.

In about 4-6 weeks, the pen is removed and the cast is changed to a shorter length.

This short cast is used for 1-2 months and can be worn togetherbrace to prevent the leg from bending again.

After surgery, your little one's legs may become stiff. Therefore, babies with crooked legs need to undergo the non-surgical process again.

The next process, namely bracingwithin a year or so after surgery, then physical therapy is followed to increase the child's ability to walk quickly.

Can crooked legs in babies be cured?

Launching from the Kids Health page, clubfoot experienced by babies can attack one or both legs. This condition does cause pain in the affected leg area.

However, this leg abnormality can cause the child to walk late or not be able to walk at all.

This condition is indeed a congenital defect, but babies with crooked legs can still be cured even if the feet are not completely.

The healing process and treatment should be done immediately before the baby starts to get up and walk. If it is healed, the bent leg can function like a normal leg.

So, you don't need to worry if your little one later wants to exercise, dance, or do various activities that rely on the ability of their feet.

Having experienced crooked legs as a child is not an obstacle for your baby to develop and carry out normal activities as an adult.