The Importance of Early Diagnosis in Adolescent Blount’s Disease
Did you know that blount's disease is the most common orthopedic deformity in children? It occurs when the shin bone (tibia) does not grow evenly, which can cause a bow or bend in the leg below the knee. The condition is most common among early walkers and children who gain weight quickly. Treatment for blount's disease usually involves using a brace or surgery to correct the bowed leg. If blount's disease is left untreated, it can lead to problems with walking and other activities later in life.
What Is Blount’s Disease?
Blount's disease, also known as tibia vara, is a condition that affects the shin bone's growth plates (tibia) and causes it to bend inward and in. Blount's disease causes a child's lower leg to twist inward and bend like the letter C does.
Infants and toddlers have bent legs, but as they begin to walk, the bend in their legs straightens out. Children with Blount's disease have a distinct curve in their legs that doesn't go away as the child matures and gets worse with time.
The Difference Between Blount’s Disease and Bowed Legs
Blount's disease and bowed legs are similar in appearance, although there are distinctions between the two disorders. During infancy and early childhood, children's legs have a natural curve (bow). When kids begin to walk, their bow straightens out during the first two years of life.
Children with Blount's disease are born with a severe inward bend in their lower legs. Blount's disease has a distinct bow shape that does not change as the child grows, whereas children with bowlegs outgrow it naturally.
Who Is Affected by Blount's Disease?
Blount's disease affects children over the age of a year. Between one and three years of age, it emerges (early-onset). Blount's disease can appear later in life during adolescence or adulthood (late-onset). People who are overweight, gain weight fast, or have infants that walk early are all at risk for the disease.
What Is the Probability of Developing Blount's Disease?
Blount's disease is an uncommon illness that affects less than 1% of the population.
What Does Blount's Disease Do To My Child's Body?
Blount's disease is a disorder that causes your child's shin bone to develop abnormally. This might cause the kid's leg to bend in, with their toes pointing inward rather than straight and a curve developing. If left untreated, this problem may get worse, causing the bend to prevent your child from walking or engaging in physical activities.
Symptoms of Blount’s Disease
The most common sign of Blount's disease is a bent lower leg. The following are Bend in the leg that resembles a C-curve. One leg or both legs may bow downwards. Nerves feel numb and cold (numbness in toes). One or both feet curl up underneath the knee, causing it to bend backward. Toes and feet point inward rather than straight ahead.
Bending does not cause discomfort in toddlers, but adolescents may experience knee discomfort that increases with athletic activity.
Blount's disease causes severe symptoms, such as:
Knee arthritis
Walking might be difficult
Joint and nerve damage are possible
What Exactly Causes Blount's Disease?
The cause of Blount's disease is unknown. Children who walk before the age of 12 months and those who gain weight fast are more likely to get Blount's disease, according to research. According to other studies, the condition may be hereditary.
Is Blount’s Disease Hereditary?
Blount's disease can be genetic in some cases (inherited from your parents), although it is not very common. For individuals who have Blount's disease, the growth plates of the interior portion of the shin bone (tibia) do not develop appropriately. There may be a link between a gene passed down to you via your parents.
What Is the Best Treatment for Blount's Disease? How Is It Diagnosed?
After performing a physical examination and obtaining X-rays of your child's legs, your healthcare provider will diagnose Blount's disease. X-rays can show your doctor how your child's bones are developing and can help them identify what is causing their leg to curve in.
Because natural bows in children's legs straighten out during this period, the diagnosis begins two years after birth. If your child's leg bow persists after two years, your healthcare provider will suspect Blount's disease and request imaging tests to confirm the diagnosis.
How Is Blount’s Disease Treated?
Blount's disease can affect both men and women, and its symptoms vary from patient to patient. Treatment varies based on each person's diagnosis with Blount's disease and the degree of their bend. The following are some of the treatment options for Blount's disease:
Brace
Your kid's therapist will advise you to get a brace that extends from the thigh to the foot. Braces are most popular among youngsters between the ages of two and three years old. For a year, braces are generally worn at night.
Surgery
After the age of four, surgery may be required, such as an osteotomy (bone cutting). This might include staples, pins, tension band plating, or removal or addition of a wedge of bone to the damaged tibia to straighten the leg.
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