Treatment Options For Your Baby

Treatment Options for Club Foot
Clubfeet.net
http://www.clubfeet.net/medical.php#external_fixators

Emedicine
Triple Arthrodesis
http://www.emedicine.com/orthoped/topic354.htm

When your child is born with club foot there are many treatments to have done to your child. According to clubfeet.net the first treatment that can be done to fix Clubfoot is called Strapping and Physiotherapy. Strapping and Physiotherapy is a method where the doctors use strips of adhesive strapping where they are passed around the foot, up the sides of the leg, and over the top of the knee, to hold the foot in a corrected position. This is usually done weekly, following some physiotherapy. This method is used in mild cases but can become ineffective after three months since babies can easily kick off the straps at this point in time.

A second method for clubfoot that clubfeet.net discusses is called plaster fixation. Plaster fixation is when a surgeon directs the foot or feet into position and then holds the foot into place by placing plaster on the foot (feet) or fiberglass casting. The plaster is taken off the foot every two weeks and a new plaster is placed back onto the foot for about up to a year or more until the foot is straighten. After casting, a special brace may be required to maintain the effects of the casting. This method is used mostly today. (This is what my parents used on me to cure my foot).













A third method that clubfeet.net discusses is called French Physio Method. French Physio method is a method that is rarely seen in the United States. This technique consists of stretching, strengthening and taping and splinting the foot. Everyday a family member stretches and massages the foot or feet followed by new tape and soft plastic splint that they have learned from the physical therapist. This process is the most time-consuming but does have successful results. The positive thing about this method is it doesn’t contain surgery.

The fourth type of surgery clubfeet.net talks about is called External Fixators. A doctor in Chertsey Hospital discovered the treatment. External Fixators help cure Club Foot by screwing screws through the side of the foot and attaching the screws to the external frame. The fixators are then attached to the leg for five months. During the five months, you turn the screw with a spanner four times a day to straighten the foot. When the fixators are removed, plaster is then attached to keep the foot straighten for an additional two to three months.