HollyDay Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 (edited) My youngest (11) has very bad to severe over pronation of her feet. We have seen 2 different orthopedic surgeons and have done PT and she takes ballet as part of that PT. The docs say nothing can be done. They say her pronation is too great for orthodics. They say surgery is probably in her future on at least one foot/leg. Since she is in her pre-puberty growth spurt, it is causing her more foot pain/leg pain, but the docs said that is "normal" for this problem. We only have the 2 orthopedic groups in town. I don't know what else to do. She does the stretches/exercises the PT gave her. She takes dance twice a week. But, I hate to see it bother her so much. Anyone else have a dc with such a foot problem? Anything else I'm missing. Edited February 5, 2011 by HollyDay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Giraffe Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 Have the doctors told you the percentage of over pronation? I have 13 degree pronation in both my feet - just wondering how bad your DD's feet are in relation. Could orthotics at least relieve the pain as she goes through her growth spurts? I found just wearing the orthotics gave me some relief. I understand the pain. I'm so sorry!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyDay Posted February 4, 2011 Author Share Posted February 4, 2011 The doc told us on a scale of 1-10, 10 being mild and 1 being debilitating, dd was a 3. That is probably not the same scale you are referring to regarding degrees from vertical (or 90). He said orthodics only work for those that are 5 and above. They can actually cause pain for those under 5. Dd has said that inserts hurt. But, so does not having inserts..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngieW in Texas Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 (edited) I have over pronation and so does my youngest. When I took the youngest to a physical therapist because I was concerned about the way she walked (at 11yo), the PT told me that nothing could be done until she got orthotics for her feet. The podiatrist said that her overpronation was severe enough that she would end up with ankle reconstruction surgery by 20yo if she didn't start with orthotics immediately. He put her in pretty aggressive orthotics. She hated them at first, but now she loves them. She went back last month for new orthotics and we're waiting for those to get approved by insurance and then made. Edited February 4, 2011 by AngieW in Texas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swirl Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 (edited) Does she go barefoot much? This made my DS's pain worse. Dr. told DS never to barefoot. Even his twice a day foot exercises he does in his shoes. My DS's was helped a lot by wearing his severe pronator Asics shoes with his orthotics most of the day. Since we homeschool, he was used to going barefoot most of the day- so this was strange to him at first. :D Spring/summer is the worst time for him as he plays a lot of baseball. He is a catcher and he struggles with Plantar Fasciitis also. The catching position of being on his toes made it much worse. We went to a special sports medicine place and they reworked his stance and he has special cleats now that help. I wonder if something she does in dance class could be causing her pain? Edited February 4, 2011 by Swirl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AuntieM Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 I am curious how the ballet helps. I mean, I can see how it helps, I guess what I am wondering is whether your dd wears any special shoes or inserts that fit into dance shoes? My dd would love to go back to dance in a ballet class, but she needs to continue therapy and strengthen leg muscles more before doing so, since she is currently prone to re-injury. She is supposed to wear her orthotics all the time (and they help SO much, she loves them). (The bolded part is my actual question...) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Giraffe Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 The doc told us on a scale of 1-10, 10 being mild and 1 being debilitating, dd was a 3. That is probably not the same scale you are referring to regarding degrees from vertical (or 90). He said orthodics only work for those that are 5 and above. They can actually cause pain for those under 5. Dd has said that inserts hurt. But, so does not having inserts..... Hmmmm.... Definitely a different scale, but I wonder if allowing the pronation to continue through the growth spurts is doing more harm than having orthotics and trying to train the feet/ankles into a more stable position. I have to go, but wonder if it's not worth a try... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyDay Posted February 4, 2011 Author Share Posted February 4, 2011 I am taking her this afternoon to a running specialist who fits orthotics. I don't know what the outcome will be, but I want to cover all avenues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anne Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 No advice, but just a comment that orthotics usually hurt for awhile until the feet get used to them. :grouphug: Anne Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lisa in Jax Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 Have you had her evaluated by a chiropractor? My 17-year-old dd has some issues with her feet which are causing pain in her knees. The chiropractor felt that both issues could be helped by getting her spine in better alignment and by strengthening her legs. It's worth a shot, IMO. Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AuntieM Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 Have you had her evaluated by a chiropractor? My 17-year-old dd has some issues with her feet which are causing pain in her knees. The chiropractor felt that both issues could be helped by getting her spine in better alignment and by strengthening her legs. It's worth a shot, IMO. Lisa Strengthening the muscles *is* key, but it is important to identify which muscles need the most attention. The way our ortho & physical therapists explained it, when the legs are out of alignment, some muscles don't get used and others learn to over compensate. Since the issue really starts from the feet up, rather than from the spine down, getting an even (proper?) foot surface (? - sorry, there are surely better terms than the ones I am using) is the first step. Then come the muscle strengthening and realignment issues. It has been a long process for us (dd) to get certain thigh and hip muscles strong enough to support weight bearing exercise, which is the real strengthener. So, at least as we've been told, those orthotics are crucial, at least in our set of circumstances. HollyDay, I hope you are able to come to a good solution. It's good that you are tackling the issue, our ortho told us many people don't bother to do anything and as adults some grown kids deal with chronic pain as a result. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gardening momma Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 No advice, but just a comment that orthotics usually hurt for awhile until the feet get used to them. :grouphug: Anne I agree. I have plantar fasciitis, and my arch support shoe inserts did hurt for a while, but now those shoes are the most comfortable ones I own. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparkle Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 I've been wondering about this too. My ds13 has terrible pronation. I haven't had him evaluated yet, but I need to. I'm wondering what treatment options we have. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnitaMcC Posted February 4, 2011 Share Posted February 4, 2011 (edited) I didn't know what it was called but after reading about over pronation... this is what my Dd has. She has some other stuff going on with her legs/hips but this is one of the biggest issues she has (probably caused the other issues, or at least made it more severe). Her shoe inserts are made for her every 1-2 years. If she doesn't use them she has severe pain (and swelling) in her ankles, knees, hips, lower back. She also had issues with her bones growing faster than muscles/tendons. Her patella (knee cap) floats and is pulled off center towards the outside of her knees. At first it was thought she had rheumatoid arthritis as her joints were so swollen and painful. When she started PT at start of 6th grade the therapists were shocked to how severe the tension in her legs/hips were. She could not fully extend her legs. She waddled like a duck. The ortho had told us that she needed to be extra careful with her achilles tendon because the inside side of the tendon was so rigid that if she stepped wrong it could tear them. Anyway, she wears the prescription inserts in her shoes (she can only wear high tops as the inserts also lifts the inside of her foot about 1 1/2 inches) and also has inserts that were made and glued in her martial arts shoes. She has patella and knee wraps that she wears when running. She has stretches that she does 3 times a day (in addition to the stretches she does at Kung Fu) and goes to chiropractor/massage therapist once a week. We are hoping that much of these issues will decrease once she stops growing, but she will always need the inserts and do her stretches. She may be able to ease up on the chiro/massage therapist and wearing the knee braces, but not completely cut them out since she is very serious with her martial arts training. One thing to mention: her martial arts exercises/stretches did more for her than the PT ever did. When she started Kung Fu, she could not lift her legs more than a foot or so off ground (while leg was extended). Now she can kick above her head with her legs extended. Edited February 4, 2011 by AnitaMcC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyDay Posted February 4, 2011 Author Share Posted February 4, 2011 (edited) We actually had the first eval done at 2, then again when she was 6. At 2 she did some OT but other than that, they said to "let it ride until school age". At six, they (we had moved to another state so this was a different doc) told us to use "good supportive shoes like lace up tennis shoes with an insole" and to continue ballet and gymnastics. At 8 they told us to stop the insoles as they were not helping and to continue ballet. At 10 we wanted another opinion. The new doc told us nothing would help, so we were instructed to stop all attempts at correction and continue activity as tolerated. The ballet teachers suggested some additional exercises and. At 11, dd saw the orthopedic doc (same one she saw at 8) for a shoulder injury. He also felt nothing could be done to help the feet but the PT who treated the shoulder injury gave some exercises anyway. Her pediatrician sees her each year and keeps saying she is doing as well as she could given the situation and that foot/leg pain just goes along with it. I want a better solution. Edited February 5, 2011 by HollyDay Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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