Podiatry and the Growing Child

As your son or daughter are growing quicker than you thought imaginable, their bodies are susceptible to growth plate problems.

The term "osteochondroses" is given to describe a group of growth-plate disorders in the young skeleton where the progress of bone growth is disrupted by a lack of blood flow to the tissue resulting in impaired healing.

It usually affects the active child between the ages of 8-15, with 80% of them occurring in the lower limb.

Although the exact cause is unknown, it is believed that chronic repetitive stress on the growth plate site is the key reason.

What to look for:
The child complaining of persistent pain in the same region, usually during exercise (or shortly after it finishes) with no history of incident. The front of the knee and heels are very common sites.

How is it diagnosed?
Unfortunately for the most part growth plate injuries do not show up in plain film X-rays. Typically, clinical assessment is adequate in diagnosing the condition.

How can podiatry help?
The key to any growth-plate problem is identifying the causative factor. Is the child training too much? Are they wearing incorrect footwear? Are the training surfaces too hard? Is their unique running technique adding to the problem?
Podiatrists can help by decreasing the stress to the symptomatic site. This can be achieved by a variety of different modalities. E.g.

- Strapping

- Bracing

- Footwear changes

- Orthotics

- Heel Lifts

- Stretches and Strengthening

We encourage all children to be as active as possible but if you have any problems please contact The Sports Injury Clinic on 9783 9990 or book online.