Clubfoot It is a congenital malformation that affects the bones, muscles and tendons of the foot, which causes it to bend inward or downward while remaining stiff and unable to recover its normal position. This pathology is presented by more boys than girls and can occur both in one foot and in both.
The most frequent causes are genetic and environmental factors. The deformity is developed in the second trimester of pregnancy, when the foot grows rapidly, and the baby is detected during a physical examination at birth.
Surgery has been used for many years to solve the problem, but now there is an alternative, the Ponseti method, which has been used at the Sant Joan de Déu Hospital in Barcelona since 1997. Dr. Anna Ey has obtained great results, 98% of cases are corrected in two months, not counting recovery. The treatment consists first of all, in an adequate manipulation and plastering of the foot that usually lasts from 3 to 6 weeks. In 80% of cases a tenotomy is performed, a cut on the skin of the Achilles tendon that is performed under local anesthesia in the medical office.
After removing the cast, and after three weeks of the tenotomy, the child should wear a splint consisting of straight boots, open in front and joined by a bar. This splint should be used day and night, except one hour for cleaning, for 3 or 5 months.
After this period, it is used about 15 hours a day until the child is 3 or 4 years old. Subsequently, he must go to the medical visit every 4 months until the child is 6 or 7 years old.
It is recommended that the treatment begin in the first month from the birth of the baby, to ensure success, although there are patients who have started the Ponseti Method with ages over 7 years. Age is not a limit to improve the quality of life.
