Out Toeing in Children
Put your children's best foot forward with our optimised care.
What is Out-Toeing in Children?
Out-toeing means the feet being turned outwards instead of straight ahead. This can occur when standing, walking, or both. Out-toeing is closely related to in-toeing and presents similar concerns. Both conditions mainly affect very young children.
Out-toeing affects a small proportion of children in Australia, as it does in every country, and although it is not harmful in itself, most parents worry as it looks unusual. In most cases, it doesn’t cause any symptoms but if there is pain in the feet or joints of the leg or your child is reluctant to join in with their normal activities, it’s time to seek treatment.
The good news is that this condition does usually resolve itself at a young age, but if you are concerned about out toeing in children, we can help. We at Optimise Health have a paediatric podiatrist as part of our multidisciplinary team that also includes Physiotherapists and Pilates practitioners.
Our physios are trained to help muscles and joints function well, while Pilates is a gentle but effective way of toning the body and introducing more flexibility. We have built up this team because we believe in treating the whole patient rather than just the symptom, and Pilates and physiotherapy can create a general physical harmony that has a follow-on effect all the way to the feet.
Causes of Out-Toeing
Out-toeing can be caused by something as basic as the baby’s position in the womb, in which case it usually resolves itself very quickly after the child is born.
Other causes can include external tibial torsion or external femoral torsion. Torsion simply means twisting, in these cases either twisting of the tibia or the femur. The tibia is a bone in the lower leg, between the knee and the ankle, while the femur is in the thigh. Because the leg and foot are one long chain of bones and connective tissue, the twisting action can pull the feet out of alignment.
Again, the body usually corrects this at a young age – but there is no harm in giving the condition support to resolve as soon as possible. There may be a history of out-toeing in the family, which really can be reassuring news. If you had it back in the day and you’ve got no sign of it now, that’s a good sign for your child’s progress.
Signs & Symptoms of Out Toeing.
What may draw a parent’s attention to out-toeing may be not so much the appearance of the feet as a degree of clumsiness that makes the child trip and fall more often than expected. Once a toddler makes that brilliant breakthrough where they can stand unaided and walk or run, we accept falling for a little while as they completely master this new movement, but if it continues it could be simply that their feet are not perfectly aligned.
Parents can’t be expected to be experts in anatomy along with every other aspect of healthcare, so the sensible answer if you suspect something is amiss is to consult us. Flat feet – where the arch of the foot is less pronounced than normal – can also cause this, as can tightness of the leg muscles so it’s best to get an assessment so you know what you’re dealing with.
Another sign can be uneven wear on shoes, which may be quite subtle and hard to spot if you’re not looking for it.
If your doctor thinks there is an issue, they will refer you to a podiatrist, and we at Optimise Health are among the biggest teams in the country. We grew to a large team by recruiting talented professionals and training them up in our methods.
How Optimise Health Can Help You?
With the body’s own tendency to resolve out-toeing, treatment can be quite gentle, with perhaps stretching and other elements of physiotherapy. Inserts in shoes is another possibility we can provide, to encourage the foot to sit straight in a natural line. Surgery is rarely called for but can be performed in extreme cases.
While a child’s out-toeing may be your first experience of our holistic approach to healthcare, we are equipped to help the whole family. Our aim is to keep the human body running smoothly and our treatments are non-invasive. Anyone who has been self-diagnosing and looking up ideas on YouTube etc. can come to us to get it done properly and effectively.
Two Great Locations.
Optimise Health have multiple specialists working across our two conveniently located clinics in Toowoomba and Warwick.
14 Ipswich Street, Toowoomba
Monday 9:00 am – 6:00 pm
Tuesday 7:00 am – 5:00 pm
Wednesday 9:00 am – 6:00 pm
Thursday 8:00 am – 5:00 pm
Friday 7:00 am – 4:00 pm
Saturday Closed
Sunday Closed
Shop 2/44-46 Wood St, Warwick
Monday 8:00 am – 4:00 pm
Tuesday 8:00 am – 4:00 pm
Wednesday 8:00 am – 4:00 pm
Thursday 8:00 am – 4:00 pm
Friday 7:00 am – 3:00 pm
Saturday Closed
Sunday Closed
Why Choose Optimise Health's Paediatric Podiatrist?
Our team of experienced practitioners includes a paediatric podiatrist with specialist knowledge of children’s foot issues, and since out-toeing is very much a child’s condition, intricate knowledge of the developing foot paves the way for effective treatment.
Paediatric care is very often quite different from adult care, because the body is still in the process of growing and bones are still smaller. Our paediatric podiatrist will quickly identify the issue, and you will be on your way to improved functionality and peace of mind.
Multi-Disciplinary Approach
State-Of-The-Art Facilities
