LO is a year old & walking, but we are seeing that she has one leg turned out most of the time &/or doesn't flatten out her foot sometimes. I'm sure she'll "straighten out" as she gets better at walking, but have any of your LOs needed physical therapy to correct their gait? I don't want to rush to seek unnecessary care, but also don't want to miss an opportunity to help her make changes when she doesn't yet have a solid (bad) habit formed yet or the muscles/tendons/ligaments are still more pliable. Thanks for your thoughts or sharing your experiences!
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Bumping for you!
I only have experience from the other end of “gait-issues” – my husband walks exactly how you described and has since he started walking and it is causing issues now as an adult and he has been in PT for several years to attempt to correct his walk pattern and even out the tendon and muscle issues he experiences from having 1 leg “off” and the other overcompensating. His parents knew he turned 1 leg/foot out when he walked and assumed it would self-correct and wasn’t a big deal….well he didn’t self-correct and it is kind of a big deal now. I mean, not a HUGE deal, but annoying and he has resulting longterm issues. I’d personally talk to your ped and see about PT sooner rather than later.
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@yoursilverlining: thanks for your response & the perspective of trying to correct later in life. I've had various sports injuries, myself, & often didn't get to PT until many months after the injury & appreciate it is easier when the abnormalities aren't the new norm!
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Just FYI. The gait starts with feet pointed out and then turns to feet aligned over time. I'd definitely watch to see it happening and maybe it's weird for just one side to turn out? But turning out itself is normal.
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Just to be safe, and due to the asymmetrical nature, I would want to rule out hip dysplasia (it gets more complicated to correct as kiddos get older).
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@Mrs Green Grass: thank you. Yes I think what I find more odd is just that it's asymmetrical. I'll likely just keep watching and waiting to see if things change, but certainly I'm curious what others have observed with their little ones.
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I work in the gait/biomechanics field and I would agree with the above that abducted/turned out feet are normal at this age. It's common for balance and will usually correct itself. My criteria for treatment is pain or injury, not correcting something that may or may not be a problem later as it's impossible to predict. Many with severe alignment never have issues! I would watch it and see if it worsens at all and potentially see a physio if you notice toe walking, limping, etc as he gets older (7 or 8 ish is when we start to get our 'adult' alignment) Be wary of bracing, corrective footwear or orthotics this young as it can actually inhibit development rather than benefit. Lots of barefoot time in thin soled shoes. Even take photos or video to record anything over time you are concerned about, so you can really see a progression rather than trying to remember.
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@muffinsmuffins: thank you so much for your response. I think that was my thinking about how babies learn to walk, and all our videos will be helpful as she progresses to see whether she's changing her gait.
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@pwnstar: I wondered what age would be considered "too old" to easily correct things if there is an issue.
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Anytime my kids look asymmetrical we pop over to see our pediatric chiropractor.
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@GoGoSnoGirl: I don't remember the specific age ranges for each type of treatment, and I don't want to hazard a guess. Our LO was evaluated for a different reason (asymmetrical thigh folds) at 9 months, but everything turned out to be just fine.
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