Transverse flatfoot is a change in the shape of the foot, characterized by drooping of its transverse arch. With this pathology, a decrease in plantar length occurs due to the fan-shaped divergence of the metatarsal bones and the displacement of the first toe outward.
Flat feet can be transverse, longitudinal and combined (combined). Most often (more than 50% of cases) transverse flatfoot occurs, sometimes in combination with other foot distortions (for example, hallux valgus or varus deformity). The orthopedic problem is mainly detected in adults, however, sometimes children and adolescents are affected by the disease.
Weakening of muscles and ligaments leads to disruption of the uniform distribution of body weight on the plantar area, so the bones and phalanges of the lower extremities have to take on additional load. This provokes the “spreading” of the foot and over time it acquires a flattened shape.
Reasons for the development of transverse flatfoot:
As the pathological condition progresses, increasing discomfort is felt, which then transforms into pain and burning. At the beginning of the development of flat feet, a person often does not attach importance to such alarming signals as heaviness in the foot after prolonged standing, walking or physical activity. Pain usually occurs at the junction of the first and second fingers.
Progressive flat feet also entails other symptoms:
The most characteristic symptom of transverse flatfoot is the development of valgus deformity of the first toe, referred to in medicine as bursitis. This pathological condition develops due to constant mechanical irritation.
The process of development of valgus deformity in transverse flatfoot
First, the doctor examines the foot visually. Smoothing of the indentation on the sole, changes in the location of the toes, swelling and soreness of the leg are taken into account. A survey is also conducted regarding hereditary factors, the presence of cardiovascular or rheumatic diseases.
Instrumental diagnostic methods:
The development of transverse flatfoot involves nearby vessels and nerve fibers in the pathological process. Considering this fact, the patient is recommended to have additional consultation with a phlebologist and neurologist.
Doctors note that the disease has become noticeably younger: if previously it mainly affected older people, now more and more people aged 25-55 years are turning to the doctor with complaints about a growing “bone”, as well as pain in the foot, fatigue and swelling of the legs.
For each patient, treatment is selected individually. Therapeutic intensity depends on the degree and severity of the pathological process, the presence of pain, inflammation and swelling, damage to nearby vessels, joints, tendons, nerve and muscle tissues.
Walking barefoot can be beneficial, especially on soft soil such as beach sand. This provides a good muscle workout, helping to stop and treat the development of transverse flat feet. This procedure will be harmful only in the last stage of the problem or in the presence of certain concomitant diseases such as plantar fasciitis (pain and inflammation of the tissues connecting the palpations and the heel bone).
At home, treatment for flat feet can also be carried out by performing a set of exercises to develop muscles, the weakening of which leads to the development of this disease.
A good exercise to treat flat feet
bend your knees and spread them slightly without lifting your heels from the floor. When looking down, your kneecaps should be further than your third (middle) toe.
More complex and lengthy gymnastics for the treatment of transverse flatfoot are shown in the video.
Correction with the help of special medical devices is effective in the early stages of the disease. For inflammation of the metatarsophalangeal joint, bolsters are prescribed, which are placed between the first and second toes and attached to the lateral surface of the foot. This allows you to return the first finger to its anatomically correct position.
To restore the physiological bend of the foot, special insoles are prescribed that reduce the load on the ankle joint and spine and prevent the progression of the disease.
To support the foot after surgery or in severe cases of pathology, orthopedic shoes are prescribed.
Therapeutic measures are recommended to relieve inflammation and pain in muscles and joints. The medication group that has the best effect is non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) based on Indomethacin, Ketorolac, Diclofenac. Typically, the dosage form prescribed by a specialist is an ointment, gel, tablets or dragees. For unbearable pain and severe inflammation, intramuscular or intravenous injections are prescribed.
This type of treatment is considered auxiliary and is usually used for 1-2 degrees of transverse flatfoot, as well as for rapid recovery (rehabilitation) after surgery. For inflammation, physiotherapy is prescribed (mud baths, UHF, electrophoresis). The goal of physical therapy is to strengthen the muscles and ligaments to naturally support the foot and prevent the progression of pathology.
Today, surgery is considered the most effective method of restoring the anatomy of the foot. Using this method, you can eliminate the orthopedic disease and return the thumb to its natural position.
During the operation, the tendons and muscle tractions responsible for the position of the first and second toe are redistributed. This is achieved by resection of the main tendons and moving them into the desired position. Sometimes, before carrying out the above actions, partial removal of the bone fragment is performed.
Many patients want to get rid of the “bone”. This is a cosmetic operation during which only the bony growth and the subcutaneous bursa forming the enlarged joint are resected.
In addition to the benefits of walking barefoot on sand or other crumbly soil mentioned above, it is worth noting the role of properly selected shoes for the formation of a normal arch of the foot and the prevention of transverse flat feet.
One medical study conducted in India on a large number of children found a lower prevalence of flat feet in those who wore sandals and slippers compared to the group wearing closed shoes. It turned out that closed toes greatly inhibited the development of the arch of the foot compared to slippers or sandals.
Scientists have also found that wearing shoes throughout early childhood can be harmful to the arch of the foot. At the same time, the chances of developing transverse flatfoot increase when a child walks in stretched, worn-out shoes or ones that are larger than the size he needs.
Please note that the above recommendations are not a call for self-medication! Timely diagnosis, the correct choice of method for eliminating the disease and fulfillment of all rehabilitation conditions will allow you to eliminate flat feet as quickly as possible and solve cosmetic problems associated with it.
Flat feet are one of the common diseases of civilization. Of the 1.5 million young Muscovites, it was detected in 9 thousand
This disorder can only be treated in childhood. In adults, flat feet can only be corrected, so let’s not waste time.
Our expert is traumatologist-orthopedist Sergei Kazantsev.
Our Mishka grew up as a chubby, funny little boy, very serious and sensible for his age. He did not like to rush around the yard; in general he was rather slow and clumsy. Yes, and he walked like a bear cub, a little clubfooted - everyone around him joked that we had made the right decision with our son’s name. His gait brought me and everyone around me only a smile and tenderness, so when the orthopedic doctor, to whom we went for a routine examination before Mishutka entered first grade, said that his son had longitudinal flat feet, it was a big surprise for me.
This was not the first time we visited the orthopedist, but as required by regulations, it was already the fifth time. And all this time the doctor wrote on the card that everything was fine with my child. And here it is on you. But the doctor explained that it is impossible to diagnose “flat feet” in a child under 5–6 years old. All children under two years of age have a flat longitudinal arch of the foot. When babies begin to take their first steps, the shock absorber function is not taken on by the foot, but by the “fat pad” located on the sole. The process of formation of the bones of the foot ends at approximately 6 years of age. Then a final diagnosis can be made.
But this does not mean that all these years we went to the orthopedist in vain. Regular checkups were necessary. In the first month of life - to exclude congenital skeletal deformities, including congenital flat feet. At 3 to 6 months of age - to identify rickets (which is also a risk factor for the development of flat feet). At 1 year - to assess the range of motion in the joints, and at 3 years - to check posture and gait, measure the length of the limbs and examine the condition of the feet.
After a visit to the orthopedist, I came home dejected. I learned from the doctor that not caring about this disease is fraught with very serious consequences. The point is not only that the legs with flat feet quickly get tired, hurt and swell, and the feet become deformed (the so-called bone or bump on the foot comes out, calluses and heel spurs appear), and the gait becomes ugly and heavy.
The whole body suffers from the wrong foot. When it ceases to perform its shock-absorbing function, the spine and joints take on this role. This is where osteochondrosis, herniated discs, back pain, scoliosis, and arthrosis of the joints come from. In addition, there are many biological points on the foot that are responsible for the functioning of the entire body, and therefore an improperly formed foot worsens the condition of absolutely all organs. Besides, you can't go far with flat feet. Many professions with this disease become inaccessible to a person. In general, we decided to fight the disease seriously. Fortunately, Mishutka’s flatfoot was in its early stages, and the doctor assured that if we were treated correctly and with discipline, then everything would go away with time.
We started giving Mishutka warm foot baths (+40–50°) with sea salt every day (about a quarter of an hour). Then – a session of manual therapeutic massage. The first course (15 procedures) was done by a professional massage therapist, and then I myself had to master this technique. The doctor also prescribed us physical therapy (paraffin-ozokerite applications, electrophoresis) - such procedures improve metabolic processes and blood circulation in the tissues, which in turn strengthens the arches of the feet.
Every day in the morning - half an hour of therapeutic exercises. We bought special equipment: a massage roller and balls of different diameters (so that Mishka could roll them with his feet), a rubber textured mat (so that you could walk on it both in the bathroom and in the room). At the dacha we learned to walk (and not fall!) on a smooth fallen log. In nature, all summer we ran barefoot on the grass, earth, and even on smooth pebbles, a whole bag of which my mother-in-law specially brought us from the sea coast. We learned and performed special exercises. At first we went to the clinic for exercise therapy, and then we started doing gymnastics at home, together - it was more fun for Mishka. From such an active life, my little bear even lost weight - the doctor praised us for this, because excess weight in itself is also a risk factor for flat feet.
Previously, when buying children's boots and sneakers, I paid attention only to their design and price. Now everything has changed. I started buying my child only shoes made of soft leather with flexible soles and low heels. The doctor also prescribed us special orthopedic insoles, which needed to be placed in both outdoor and indoor shoes. Fortunately, in our case it didn’t come down to orthopedic shoes. Arch support insoles (or orthoses, as doctors call them) are prescribed already at the first degree of pathology. They help relieve painful areas of the foot and correct existing deformities with mild flat feet.
But healthy children should not wear them “just in case” - the feet will not receive enough load and this can also cause flat feet. Therapeutic insoles were made for us individually, to order, based on casts of Mishutka’s feet. We spent a lot of effort on treatment, but now my son is no longer diagnosed with flat feet.
Even a child’s very first shoes, from which he will grow out of in just a month, should:
> be made only from high-quality, breathable materials (this applies to both the upper and the insole);
> be comfortable, do not rub the baby’s legs with the internal seams;
> have a high, hard back;
> secure the leg tightly using lacing or Velcro, but under no circumstances squeeze it or dangle it;
> have a stable and non-slip sole, with a small heel.
Therapeutic gymnastics is used for the first degree of flat feet, it trains the muscles, strengthens the ligaments, blood circulation, normalizes muscle tone, corrects the defective alignment of the foot bones, and forms the correct walking stereotype.
1. Standing with your legs apart, toes “looking” inward, alternately turn your body to the right and left, turning the corresponding foot to the outer edge.
2. Walk with your toes tucked and then with your toes raised.
3. Walking on toes and heels.
4. Several times a day for 10–15 minutes, walk on the outer edges of the foot, like a “club-toed bear.”
5. Pick up some small object from the floor with your toes: for example, parts of a construction set.
6. Lying on the floor, twist your feet left and right, forward and backward, bending and straightening your toes.
7. Lying down, rake imaginary sand with the soles of your feet.
8. Rise up on your toes and squat without lifting your heels off the floor.
After 4–5 years, parents themselves can conduct a simple test to determine if their child has flat feet. To do this, you need to smear the baby’s feet with fatty cream, iodine or gouache, and then place him flat on a sheet of paper. You will get a clearly visible foot print.
Look carefully at the trail. Normally, there is a notch along the inner edge of the foot (there will be no imprint on the paper in this place). This notch in the middle should occupy more than half the width of the foot. If it is not there at all or it is narrow (half a foot or less), then there is flatfoot.
Professionally, plantography (as this method is called) will be done in a clinic - the diagnosis is made on the basis of this study and the results of a clinical examination. X-rays are taken for adults, but not for children under 9 years of age. For the “home” determination of flat feet, there is also the Friedland podometric method. To do this, you need to measure the height of the baby’s foot with a compass, that is, the distance from the floor to the upper surface of the navicular bone (the highest part of the foot). Then you need to measure the length of your foot. The height of the foot must be multiplied by 100 and then divided by the length of the foot (all measurements are taken in millimeters). The resulting value is the podometric index. If it is 31–29, everything is in order, if 28–27, it means the arch of the foot is low, less than 25 is a sign of flat feet.
– My child, thank God, has never had flat feet, although he always wears sandals, sneakers or just runs around barefoot. To avoid problems, I give him a foot massage.
Orthotics are an important part of the conservative treatment of foot disorders. Their function is the correct distribution of body weight on the foot and its physiologically correct positioning. The products are used for preventive purposes, as well as for the treatment of diseases in which the physiological shock-absorbing ability of the foot is lost.
How to choose the right orthopedic insoles for an adult for the treatment of diseases or prevention? What should you pay attention to when choosing them? What types of insoles are there? How should they be worn? Which products are better - ready-made or customized? How to choose orthopedic insoles for a child? Below we will answer all the questions.
There are several types of orthopedic insoles depending on the purpose of wearing.
If there is no disease, but your legs get tired, it is recommended to choose preventive orthopedic products. They are designed to relieve stress during walking and long standing. They are soft in structure and should provide comfort. They are made from leather or foam. This type of product is intended for people who temporarily or permanently experience stress on their legs:
It is recommended to choose them in the following cases:
Their name itself speaks for itself. It is recommended to choose these orthopedic products for those who already have changes in the bones of the foot and impaired blood supply to the lower extremities. When using them, pain may occur. This is due to the fact that orthopedic therapeutic insoles try to return the deformed foot to its physiological position. Tension of ligaments and muscles is accompanied by pain.
It is recommended to choose therapeutic orthopedic products for the following diseases:
How to choose therapeutic orthopedic insoles for an adult or a child? - as when choosing any remedy, this should only be done by a doctor, in this case an orthopedist. As a result of constant wear, medicinal products relieve inflammation, eliminate fatigue and pain in the legs. They also prevent diseases of the feet, large joints and spine.
Based on their functional purpose, medicinal products are divided into several types:
The therapeutic effect of each orthopedic product follows from the name. The purpose of the corrective model is to correct the position of the foot relative to the musculoskeletal system. Therefore, their design contains additional parts - instep supports, pelota and high sides. Therapeutic models are designed to relieve pain, increase leg endurance, and correct the biomechanics of the foot.
Arch support orthotics should be chosen to reduce stress on the foot. They relieve pain and increase leg endurance during exercise.
Arch shaping models should be chosen to smoothly transform the arch of the foot. They are used in children's orthopedic products for existing flat feet.
Unloading insoles should be chosen if you need to redistribute the load from problem areas evenly across the entire foot. This is achieved by special recesses and bulges. They help avoid contact of the painful area of the sole with the product. Materials of different density and composition relieve the load on the arch of the foot when walking and standing for long periods of time.
When buying insoles, you will notice letter and number symbols on them. Each label is intended to be worn for a specific disease. Some products are used when changing the position of the foot - supination, that is, turning the foot inward, or pronation - turning it outward.
The therapeutic effect of orthopedic insoles largely depends on the material used by manufacturers.
The following orthopedic models are available:
People with flat feet often use insoles. The patient can choose the appropriate model after consulting an orthopedic doctor. For longitudinal flat feet, insoles are chosen in which the inserts go along the foot. For transverse flat feet, insoles with pads are used. Patients with combined flat feet need insoles with pelotes and arch supports.
Products of different designs are produced for winter and summer shoes. Insulated models can be selected with fur. Manufacturers produce products for sandals or sandals that are thin and barely noticeable to the eye. They are attached to the shoes with an adhesive base.
Who needs orthotics?
People can choose preventive insoles for themselves. They can be worn immediately all the time or during exercise. Silicone insoles should not be used for more than 16 hours a day. They are not used for wounds on the foot.
Important! Before inserting orthopedic insoles into shoes, the factory pads must be removed.
The mode of wearing insoles is determined by the orthopedist. It is not recommended to wear newly purchased therapeutic insoles all the time, because they can chafe. At first they are worn for 10–15 minutes, gradually increasing the time. When the foot adapts, it can be used several hours a day.
When planning to go shopping, you need to take with you the shoes in which the insole will be used. In addition to the profile choice, you need to pay attention to the following details of the product.
It is preferable to choose models made of polymer materials, leather or cork.
Insoles for the treatment of plantar fasciitis are used in regular shoes. If there is a heel, it should not be more than 4–5 cm high.
How to choose orthopedic insoles for heel spurs? When purchasing, you need to focus on the following criteria.
On the recommendation of a doctor, the model may have special wedges under the heel if there is supination or pronation of the foot. Rigid orthopedic insoles correctly distribute the load on the foot. Thanks to this, the kinetics of the foot improves and pain decreases. During fitting, you need to pay attention to the fact that the toes of the shoes move freely, and that the insole protrudes beyond the phalanges by 1 cm.
How to choose orthopedic insoles for longitudinal flat feet? Experts believe that the best material for making this type of product is high-temperature plastic. It compensates well for the sagging of the arch of the foot and keeps the heel in the correct position.
The main requirement in the design of an insole for longitudinal flat feet is the presence of an instep support. It evenly distributes the load on the altered surface of the foot, reduces pain when walking, and improves the biomechanics of the lower limb. This model reduces leg pain when walking or standing for long periods of time. It also delays the formation of heel spurs and the progression of the disease.
With transverse deformation, the front part of the foot in the toe area suffers. The main symptom of transverse flatfoot is pain and fatigue in the foot at the end of the day, cramps in the calf muscles. In advanced cases, pain appears in the knee, hip joints and back. Due to improper load distribution, a transversely spread foot is formed. In addition, the thumb moves to the side, and an exophyte is formed in the joint area, called a “bone” by patients.
How to choose orthopedic insoles for transverse flat feet? The product for this pathology must have a metatarsal pad - pelot. It supports the transverse arch, reduces stress, and relieves pain in the front part of the sole. When worn continuously, the kinetics of the foot is corrected and pain in the back and joints is eliminated.
With this type of flatfoot, both arches of the foot are flattened. Treatment is aimed at correct distribution of the load throughout the foot, correction of kinetics, and reduction of pain.
How to choose orthopedic insoles for combined flat feet? By design, these products must be rigid. To support the longitudinal arch there is an instep support. The metatarsal pad, the pelot, helps reduce the load on the transverse arch. The presence of a heel shock absorber relieves impact on the back of the foot. Thus, an insole with three points of support corrects the kinetics of the lower limb and spine and reduces pain when walking.
This type of product is manufactured by prosthetic factories or workshops. How to choose custom orthopedic insoles?
The following data is used during production:
The effectiveness of the model is influenced by manufacturing technology and material:
According to the technology of some manufacturers, insoles are made in 20 minutes in the following sequence.
Custom orthopedic insoles, made taking into account the anatomical features of the foot, are considered the most effective. Therefore, orthopedists recommend choosing them so that the products are beneficial.
In childhood, with incorrectly selected shoes or a genetic predisposition, changes in the bone structure can develop:
In childhood, when the transverse arch of the foot is still undeveloped, you should choose preventive insoles with a thickened arch support.
Important! For children, insoles are selected according to the existing foot deformation or tendency towards it. And only an orthopedic doctor can determine how to choose children's orthopedic insoles.
For a deformed foot, the product is ordered from an orthopedic salon. They are made using plaster casts or computer modeling. Children with diagnosed flat feet are registered by orthopedists. Such children are prescribed constant wearing of insoles until the age of 23, until the foot is formed. In this case, the condition of the spine is taken into account. When these children become adults, they will not have developed diseases of the musculoskeletal system - arthrosis and osteochondrosis.
As a result, we highlight the main points of the above. Orthopedic insoles are the basis for the conservative treatment of foot diseases, and also serve as their prevention. Various ready-made models are available. They differ in design and material of manufacture depending on their intended purpose. Ready-made insoles are purchased after consulting a doctor. Orthopedists recommend choosing more effective individual insoles that take into account the anatomical features of the foot.
It is believed that all children are born with flat feet by default - remember the tiny leg of a baby with an absolutely flat foot. Newborn children do not have a load on the foot, but when the child grows up and takes his first steps, its arches begin to form. Prevention of the disease should begin from this moment - because, according to medical statistics, the number of adolescents suffering from flat feet is approaching 70%.
In children, the prognosis is more optimistic - treatment started at the first signs of deformity gives a good, lasting result. It includes physical stimulation methods that strengthen the ligaments of the foot and train the muscles. Massage, physical therapy, walking barefoot on uneven surfaces, on grass and pebbles are simple, affordable and effective ways to strengthen the arch of a child’s foot.
Until about the 16th century. in European countries, beggars and vagabonds were considered one of the most respected layers of society. They were seen as an example of Christian asceticism.
At that time, the material well-being of Europeans directly depended on the harvest in peasant fields, which varied greatly depending on the vagaries of European nature. As a result, a lot of people went bankrupt and had no other way to feed themselves except by begging. Such a fate could threaten even noble people, and usually anyone who had something to give to a beggar did not miss the opportunity to atone for his sins with alms.
But life for the poor was by no means easy. Most of the inhabitants of Europe were then periodically visited by serious need, and their alms could not be abundant. Even knights and nobles were sometimes forced to sew their own clothes, which wore out to holes.
Since the 16th century, the attitude towards the poor has gradually changed: the beggars are no longer seen as the incarnation of Christ, they do not expect that their prayers will become an intercession before God for the one who helped the tramp, for example, in the form of alms. Beggars and simply vagabonds begin to be attracted to forced labor, pursuing the goal: education through labor. Workhouses and special colonies were created, and tramps were sent to the galleys.
Robin Hood was not a “noble robber” who robbed the rich and gave the loot to the poor, but a rebel of the national liberation movement.
In the 12th century. Britain, inhabited by the Saxons, was under occupation by the Normans who came from Scandinavia. The Saxons resisted Norman dominance for a very long time, going into the forests and attacking Norman troops, robbing Norman merchants and officials. They often distributed the spoils among their fellow tribesmen oppressed by the occupiers. Robert Goth, later renamed by the people as Robin Hood (“the Good One”), was the leader of one of these Saxon rebel forces.
Gradually, the Normans and Saxons got used to each other, stopped fighting, began to enter into mixed marriages and eventually merged into one people - the English. And Robin Hood from the national leader of the Saxons turned in legends into a fighter against the greedy rich and defender of the poor. However, in the legends about him there is information that his associates were by no means poor representatives of the Saxon people. We will write more about Britain more than once on history-thema.com.
Polish nobility XIV - XV centuries.
The feudal system is based on the fact that the ruler of the people (in Europe these were kings) in exchange for service provides land with the peasants working on it to his closest assistants (princes, dukes), and they, in turn, distribute their plots among the nobles who personally serve them. The latter may have even smaller nobles in their service, to whom they provide land from their allotment. For refusal to serve, the highest feudal lord (senior) can take away the land from a lower rank (vassal).
But at the end of the Middle in Europe, land was assigned to the nobles as full property. In the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (the united kingdom of Poland and Lithuania), this led to the fact that the nobles, who had very small plots of land, stopped performing public service, and in order to feed themselves, they began to plow the land together with their serfs.
the opinion of the editor may not coincide with the opinion of the author of the publication
If you are interested in interesting medical facts, then we offer you a short overview of what osteochondrosis is .
This compound word comes from two Greek words: “Osteo” - bone, and “Chondros” - cartilage . Let's try to understand what kind of disease this is and why it happens.
In simple terms, osteochondrosis is a disease that is accompanied by damage to cartilage in the joints. Moreover, this can happen almost anywhere in the human musculoskeletal system.
However, as a rule, the disease manifests itself on the spine. Vertebral osteochondrosis is divided into three types: cervical, thoracic and lumbar.
The process occurring in the body of a person suffering from osteochondrosis looks something like this. First, the internal structure of the cartilage begins to change, which leads to a loss of its elasticity. Changing its shape and, as it were, shrinking, the cartilage forces the neighboring bone tissue to grow into the “vacated territory.”
All this leads to the fact that the intervertebral distance is significantly reduced and the functioning of the affected area of the spinal column is completely destabilized.
Against the background of these disorders, the nerve roots begin to be pinched, which leads to serious pain and dysfunction of the back muscles.
It is important to know that osteochondrosis is an insidious disease. It does not always have clearly defined symptoms. As a rule, it is characterized by periods of exacerbation and “calm.” Each of the three types of vertebral osteochondrosis has its own symptoms.
It is best to treat osteochondrosis under the supervision of a doctor. The main thing here is a gradual and competent correction of the situation, especially if the disease has been running for a long time.
In case of severe pain, special medications are prescribed, and it is also recommended to wear various corsets and belts that relieve stress on the spine.
Of course, the most important thing in the treatment of this disease is physical therapy. However, it requires absolute regularity and precise execution of all exercises.
In fact, most “ordinary” back problems can be resolved with proper exercise and restoration of musculoskeletal interaction.
We hope that you now know what osteochondrosis is and will be able to share this interesting fact from the field of medicine with your inquisitive friends.
Flat feet in children mean deformation of the foot, accompanied by flattening of its longitudinal arch, resulting in the formation of a flat sole. This is one of the most common diseases of the musculoskeletal system. Children's flat feet are diagnosed only at the age of five or six years, since the child's bone apparatus is not yet strong enough, and therefore the foot is a cartilaginous compound with very weak muscles and ligaments that are easily subject to sprains. Diagnosis is also complicated by the fact that the soles of a small child visually appear flat because the arches of the feet are smoothed by a fatty pad, masking the bony base. The foot acquires a normal shape only at the age of five or six, and only if the development of the foot proceeds without deviations. If there are any developmental abnormalities in children, a pathology called flat feet appears.
Flat feet in children can develop for many reasons, the most common of which are:
The main symptoms of flat feet in children are the following:
To diagnose flat feet in children, the following test is used: take a sheet of paper, lubricate the feet with vegetable oil, and then place the child on the floor so that the body weight is distributed evenly over the entire foot. They examine the footprint, and if it differs from the norm, then we can talk about incipient flat feet.
Flat feet in children must be treated, since the consequences of untreated flat feet can be the most unfavorable. Flat feet in an advanced form can provoke not only the appearance of chronic pain in the legs and back, but even disturbances in the development of the skeleton, which is especially dangerous in childhood. In addition, with flat feet, the spring functions of the feet are disrupted, as a result of which depreciation practically disappears, which means that the entire shock is transmitted to the lower leg, as well as to the hip joint, which ultimately leads to arthrosis.
Treatment of flat feet in children should not be advisory, but mandatory. Treatment most often involves both physiotherapeutic procedures and special massages, a complex of physical therapy and manual therapy. In some cases, medications may also be prescribed, but doctors try not to resort to them unless absolutely necessary.
It is very important to recognize flat feet at an early stage, and also to take all preventive measures to prevent its development. One of these preventive measures is exercise, which will help strengthen the muscles by adding daily exercise to them in the form of gymnastic exercises. The set of such exercises includes warm-up, walking with gradual acceleration, exercises for bending the toes and rotating the feet. As a preventive measure, allow your child to walk barefoot more in the summer, especially on grass, sand, and pebbles.
Enroll your child in a sports section appropriate for his age, however, it is important to remember that a child with flat feet should not engage in running or rhythmic activities, as this can lead to skeletal injuries. The best sport to prevent flat feet is swimming. There is also a special preventive massage, which is designed to stimulate blood circulation and tone muscles. Before the child takes baths in the evenings, his legs should be rubbed and kneaded, massaging the foot itself.
There is also a special massager in the form of wooden balls that helps to stretch your legs. It is important to understand that special therapeutic massage for flat feet can only be done by a specialist doctor. In addition, special therapeutic baths are very popular as a preventive measure for flat feet in children. They are made with the addition of coarse sea salt. It is also very important to wear the right shoes that do not deform the foot, but maintain it in the correct physiological shape. It is very important to buy good branded orthopedic shoes for children, which, while protecting the child’s foot from impacts, at the same time allow the foot to develop freely.