GENU VALGUS & GENU VARUS

Natural History of normal evolution of the

alignment of the lower limbs

Bowlegs in new born and infant

With medial tibial torsion = fetal position

Becomes straight by 18/12

By 2 or 3 genu valgus develop (avg. 12°)

By 7 spontaneous correction
To the normal of adult valgus ( 8°♀ and 7°♂)
 Persistent genu varum

• Worried parents

• About 3 years old +bow legs +mild lateral thrust at the

knees + in-toeing

• Assessment:
- History
- etiologic factors
 Examination
• Height

• See ( front, back & side)

• Measure
 IC distance,
 lateral thigh-leg angle,
 center of gravity

• Site of varus
 Causes
• Lateral ligament laxity
• Blount’s disease
• Congenital pseudoarthrosis of tibia
• Coxa vara
In ligamentous laxity notelat.Widening In Blount angulation at med.tib
Of knee joints metaphysis
In cong. Pseudarthrosis of tibia,the In coxa vara ,angulation at the neck shaft
angulation is in the distal ⅓ level
• Gait: intoeing, lateral thrust-the fibular head and
upper tibia shift laterally in Blount due to laxity and
incompetence of the lat. Collat. Lig.
• Stability
• Symmetry
• Level of fibular head, normally at the level
of the upper tibial growth plate, while it is proximal
in Blount, cong.longitudinal dificiency of the tibia
and achondroplasia
 X-ray

• 3 years and older

• Getting worse
• Abnormal site of
angulation
• Large physis and
epiphysis
• History – taruma, infection,
possible metal intoxication(lead or
floride)

Metaphysial/diaphysial
angle ≥ 18°
 Finding

• Metaphysis, thick and frayed

in rickets

• In physiologic genu
varum no intrinsic bone
disease, gentle curve, medial
cortices thickening, horizontal
joint lines of the knee & ankle are
tilted medially
Knock Knees / Genu Valgum

• Legs are bowed

inwards in the
standing position.
Bowing occurs at or
around the knee. On
standing with knees
together, the feet are
far apart.
 Investigations 1
• Measurement of intermalleolar distance. i.e
Distance between two malleoli when the knees
are gently touching with legs in adduction.
• Up to 3 and a half inches (9 centimeters) with
child lying down is acceptable.
• 75% of children aged 2 - 4 years have some
degree of intermalleolar separation.
 Investigations2
• Intermalleolar separation under 3 inches is
normal at any age.
• Periodic observation and measurement if less
than 3.5 inches.
• If > 3.5 inches, need AP X-Ray with both legs
on same film for knee deformity, hip and
ankle joints and view of both long bones.
 Indicators of Serious Disease
• Pronounced asymmetry
• Short stature
• Other skeletal
abnormalities
• Intermalleolar
separation greater than
3.5 inches
 Aetiology

• Developmental
• Miscellaneous syndromes e.g Rickets (Alk Phos
raised, with x-ray changes)
• Rare Genetic disorders e.g Cohen Syndrome
• Nutritional conditions e.g Vitamin C deficiency
• Autoimmune e.g RA
• Degenerative e.g OA
 When to refer
• Age > 7 with knock knee
• Unilateral problem i.e Asymmetry of legs
• Intermalleolar distance > 3.5 inches (9 cms)
• Associated symptoms e.g Pain, Limp
 Treatment
• No evidence that shoe modification, splints, or
exercises affect condition
• No evidence to justify surgical intervention
under 6 inches of intermalleolar separation.
• Surgical options:
Medial epiphyseal stapling at 10 to 11
years
Corrective osteotomy at maturity.
 Flat Feet / Pes Planus
• Arch of the foot is low.
Medial arch is lost.
There may be some
valgus and eversion
deformity of the foot.
 Normal Development
• Flat feet are normal
when learning to walk.
• Medial arch does not
develop until 2nd / 3rd
year of life.
• Normal arch functions
as a shock absorber.
 Investigation
• Ask patient to stand on
tiptoes.
• If medial arch restores
itself when standing on
tiptoe or when foot is
unloaded, no action is
needed.
 Presentations
• 2 Groups:

– Pain free feet with normal mobility and muscle

power.

– Painful, stiff, hypermobile feet with abnormal

muscle power i.e weak or spastic feet.
 Causes of Flat Feet
• Loose - ligamented flat foot:
– Commonest type.
– Always bilateral.
– Arch looks normal when non weight bearing /
standing on tip toe.
– Laxity can often be demonstrated in other joints.
 Rare Causes of Flat Feet
• Rocker bottom foot : Congenital vertical talus.
• Coalition Syndrome: Peroneal spastic flat foot.
• In both, subtalar joint movement is limited.
• In peroneal spastic flat foot, attempting to
invert hind foot produces painful spasm of
peroneal muscles.
 Rare Causes of Flat Feet
• May be part of a more generalized condition

– Severe joint laxity

– Cerebral Palsy
– Peroneal spastic flat foot
– Downs Syndrome
 Treatment
• No proven benefit from insoles, shoe
modification, foot exercises.
• Spasmodic type :
– Hindfoot fusion for pain relief.
– Subtalar arthrodesis corrects deformity.
DEVELOPMENTAL DYSPLASIA OF
THE HIP (DDH)
 DDH
• Very important condition as early diagnosis
and correction prevent major damage.
• All newborns are screened for DDH by
Barlow’s and Ortolani’s manoevre
• Developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) is a
dislocation of the hip joint that is present at
birth. The condition is found in babies or
young children.
 Causes, incidence, and risk factors
• The hip is a ball and socket joint.
• In some newborns, the acetabulum is too shallow
and the femoral head may slip out of the socket,
either part of the way or completely. One or both
hips may be involved.
• The cause is unknown. Low levels of amniotic
fluid in the womb during pregnancy can increase
a baby's risk of DDH. Other risk factors include:
 Being the first child
 Being female
 Breech position during pregnancy
 Family history of the disorder
• DDH occurs in about 1 out of 1,000 births.
 Symptoms
• There may be no symptoms. Symptoms that may occur
can include:
 Leg with hip problem may appear to turn out more
 Reduced movement on the side of the body with the
dislocation
 Shorter leg on the side with the hip dislocation
 Uneven skin folds of thigh or buttocks
• After 3 months of age, the affected leg may turn
outward or be shorter than the other leg.
 Signs and tests
• Pediatric health care providers routinely screen all newborns and
infants for hip dysplasia. There are several methods to detect a
dislocated hip or a hip that is able to be dislocated.
• The most common method of identifying the condition is a physical
exam of the hips, which involves applying pressure while moving
the hips. The health care provider listens for any clicks, clunks, or
pops.
• Ultrasound of the hip is used in younger infants to confirm the
problem. An x-ray of the hip joint may help diagnose the condition
in older infants and children.
• A hip that is truly dislocated in an infant should be detected at
birth, but some cases are mild and symptoms may not develop until
after birth, which is why multiple exams are recommended. Some
mild cases are silent and cannot be found during a physical exam.
 Treatment
• When the problem is found during the first 6 months of
life, a device or harness is used to keep the legs apart
and turned outward (frog-leg position). This device will
usually hold the hip joint in place while the child grows.
• This harness works for most infants when it is started
before age 6 months, but it is less likely to work for
older children.
• Children who do not improve, or who are diagnosed
after 6 months often need surgery. After surgery, a cast
will be placed on the child's leg for a period of time.
 Prognosis
• If hip dysplasia is found in the first few months
of life, it can almost always be treated
successfully with a positioning device
(bracing). In a few cases, surgery is needed to
put the hip back in joint.
• Hip dysplasia that is found after early infancy
may lead to a worse outcome and may need
more complex surgery to fix the problem.
PERTHES DISEASE
 Pathology
• Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease (LCPD) is the name
given to idiopathic osteonecrosis of the capital
femoral epiphysis of the femoral head. 
Causes, incidence, and risk factors
• Legg-Calve-Perthes disease usually occurs in boys
4 - 10 years old. There are many theories about
the cause of this disease, but little is actually
known.
• Without enough blood to the area, the bone dies.
The ball of the hip will collapse and become flat.
Usually only one hip is affected, although it can
occur on both sides.
• The blood supply returns over several months,
bringing in new bone cells. The new cells
gradually replace the dead bone over 2 - 3 years.
 Symptoms
The first symptom is often limping, which is usually
painless. Sometimes there may be mild pain that
comes and goes.
•Other symptoms may include:
•Hip stiffness that restricts movement in the hip
•Knee pain
•Limited range of motion
•Persistent thigh or groin pain
•Shortening of the leg, or legs of unequal length
•Wasting of muscles in the upper thigh
 Signs and tests
• During a physical examination, the health care
provider will look for a loss in hip motion and
a typical limp. A hip x-ray or pelvis x-ray may
show signs of Legg-Calve-Perthes disease. An
MRI scan may be needed.
 Treatment
• The main treatment method is containment. That is to
keep the femoral head inside the acetabulum for
moulding.  In some cases, bracing is used to help with
containment.
• Physical therapy and anti-inflammatory medicine (such
as ibuprofen) can relieve stiffness in the hip joint.
• Health care providers no longer recommend several
months of bedrest, although a short period of bed rest
may help those with severe pain.
• Surgery may be needed if other treatments fail.
Surgery ranges from lengthening a groin muscle to
major hip surgery to reshape the pelvis, called an
osteotomy. The type of surgery depends on the
severity of the problem and the shape of the ball of
the hip joint
 Prognosis
• The outlook depends on the child's age and the
severity of the disease. In general, the younger
the child is when the disease starts, the better
the outcome.
• Children younger than 6 years old who receive
treatment are more likely to end up with a
normal hip joint. Children older than age 6 are
more likely to end up with a deformed hip joint,
despite treatment, and may later develop
arthritis.
Slipped Upper Femoral
Epiphysis
 SUFE
• Often a traumatic or associated with a minor
injury, slipped upper femoral epiphysis is one
of the most common adolescent hip disorders
and represents a unique type of instability of
the proximal femoral growth plate
 Epidemiology
• Incidence is 30-60/100,000 children per year.
• Most commonly it occurs in boys of 10-17 years of
age. Peak age is 13 years for boys and 11.5 years
for girls.
• It is the most common hip disorder in adolescents.
• The left hip is more commonly affected than the
right; it is bilateral in 20-40% of cases.2
• it is three times as common in boys.
 Risk factors
• Mechanical: local trauma, obesity.
• Inflammatory conditions: neglected septic
arthritis.
• Hypothyroidism, hypopituitarism, growth
hormone deficiency,
pseudohypoparathyroidism.
• Previous radiation of the pelvis, chemotherapy,
renal osteodystrophy-induced bone dysplasia.
 Symptoms
• Discomfort in the hip, groin, medial thigh or knee (knee pain is
referred from the hip joint) during walking; pain is accentuated by
running, jumping, or pivoting activities.
• Mild symptoms with the child able to walk with altered gait. In a
significant number of cases knee pain is reported as the only
symptom.
• External rotation of the leg during walking. Range of motion of the
hip shows reduced internal rotation with additional external
rotation.
• When flexed up, the hip tends to move in an externally rotated
position.
• Mild-to-moderate shortening of the affected leg.
• Atrophy of the thigh muscle may be noted.
 DD
• Acute hip fracture
• Perthes' disease
• Acute transient synovitis
• Osteomyelitis
• Septic arthritis
 Investigations
• Anteroposterior and 'frog-leg' lateral X-rays
show widening of epiphyseal line or
displacement of the femoral head.
 Management
• Avoid moving or rotating the leg. The patient should
not be allowed to walk.
• Provide analgesia and immediate orthopaedic
referral if the diagnosis is suspected.
• The patient should be scheduled for surgery
immediately.
• Surgical closure of the epiphysis, usually by inserting
screws percutaneously.
• Corrective osteotomy is usually reserved for
treatment of severe deformities after the patient has
stopped growing.
 Prognosis
• Prognosis depends on the initial degree of
epiphyseal slippage.
• The end result is good to excellent in 94-96% of
cases if fragments are displaced by less than
one third of the diameter of the femoral neck.
• With increasing displacement, complications
increase and up to 45% of patients have a fair-
to-poor surgical result.