Bow Leggedness

My son was bowlegged until between age 2 and 3. He's perfectly fine now. It really concerned us for a while.

I would not be concerned with him not walking until he's past 18 months.

Ask your pediatrician for a peditric physical therapy evaluation. They would be the best at determining his needs. He should be closer to getting up and walking at this age. I am a pediatric speech therapist and many times I have seen therapists have a better plan to help your child than the pediatrician. A physical therapist specializes in legs, feet and motor movements. They are very well trained. Good luck.

Have your physician look at his legs. You might need an orthopedic consult.
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It may be something very minor but I would suggest having your pedi check out his legs. He may refer him to a pediatric ortho. As for the clothes, no way did they do anything to his legs. Don't worry about that a bit. We have close family friends whose daughter was clubfooted on one of her feet and her parents stalled and didn't take her to the dr until she was over 2 yrs old. The poor thing could barely run without falling down, it was so sad to watch. That's why I would suggest having it checked out now, esp. since he is 13 mo. and will walk soon. Don't worry about him not walking just yet, either. My son didn't walk on his own until he was 14 mo. old. Good luck!!

Ask his pedi to take a closer look. If you are breast feeding you may want to check into a Vit D supplement. Check with the pedi first though. Some people are just bow legged by heredity and others are as a result of something else (think Vit D deficiency --> calcium deficient bones). Probably nothing to worry about. As they walk the legs typically straighten out as long as none of the above apply. good luck

If you can't afford (or insurance doesn't pay) for PT and you really think this is what's impeding his walking, I would call ECI (google it for the FW area to get their number). You do NOT have to have a dr. referral, you can call them and they will come do a free evaluation and if he qualifies everything will be based on a sliding scale based on income, but can be totally free. They took about 4 weeks or so to make the initial eval so imo I would just call them now and see if they will put you on the list. If he starts walking in the meantime you can call and cancel but, like I said it's free - well tax $ pays for it - so it's a great service to use imo. HTH!

No, it is not your fault; has nothing to do with the clothes. My brother had wear a cast to straighten his legs out - his feet would turn in. This a long-time ago - in the 70's so I am sure things have improved since then. Also, I have a friend who's legs curved and feet turned in; she wore braces on her legs when she was a toddler to correct it. Again, back in the 70's. Both look very normal today and would never know the history. Check with your pediatrician now as it is much better to correct the problem at young age when they are still growing and bones are soft verses when they get older. I do know that kids have bow legs for a little bit as my daughter did the first year of life then things started straightening out. I remember being worried; however, she is now 2 and looks fine. However, I would check with the pedi at his 15 month check to make sure you don't need early intervention. Good luck!!

M.,

I was going to suggest Scottish Rites Hospital (SRH) also. We were concerned with my nephew who turned 2 in August. He seemed to be so bow legged that when he walked we thought as he grew his legs would turn in and he would trip over himself. After taking him to SRH and having him evaluated; it turns out his legs were mimicking the position in the womb and would self correct. The falling down and tripping as he walked was part of growing. This was in July 2009. We can now see that his legs are straightening somewhat and it looks as if they will eventually be normal and not nearly as bow. He is scheduled to go back to SRH this month, just as a check up evaluation.

The only person to trust in this matter is your pediatrician or family doctor. Children this age often "look" more bowlegged than they really are, but if he is not pulling up and trying to walk, it is something your doctor should check.

I'm pretty sure it is NOT the clothes!!!

We experienced the same thing with one of ours. Took him to doctor because at 18 - 20 months the bowlegs were very pronounced and I thought maybe he needed braces on his legs or special shoes or some type of therapy. Our wonderful pediatrician, God bless him, did a careful examination and told us there was nothing to worry about because he would grow out of it at around 2 years old. I was skeptical but the good doctor had always been right about everything else so trusted him. Sure enough a few months later our little guy was running and playing at the park with no problem keeping up with the other kids. Mention your concerns to your pediatrician and follow his/her advice. Just wanted you to know that sometimes what looks like it might be a problem simply isn't. Hope all turns out well for your little one.

My little son was exactly the same way. I asked the doctor if he was gonna be bow-legged, and he said that at this age it's really too early to tell. Kids that age have not been using their thigh/hip muscles very much yet, and when the really start walking, that's when the muscles will fully develop and many times the bowleggedness disappears. And that's exactly what happened to our son! He's almost 3 now and he is definitely not bow-legged.

My son was very bowlegged at 2 and 3yrs old. Everyone noticed it, but the pediatrician just said that he would eventually straighten out and he did.

Don't know if that has anything to do with his not walking yet. You might talk with your doctor about it, but hopefully he'll straighten out like my son did.

I am a pediatric physical therapist, and I can assure you that the clothes he wore had no affect on how his legs are now. That being said, it is normal for all babies to be somewhat bowlegged at this age. Their little legs actually straighten out the more they stand and walk, so as he learns to walk some of this should improve. However, if his feet turn in to the degree that you think this is impeding his balance, a PT referral would never hurt. You could keep an eye on him over the next month and see if he improves with his standing and walking, but from what you described it sounds like he's OK.

I doubt that there are any clothes that would contribute to or cause this so please don't blame yourself or worry about that. A lot of times babies do appear bow legged when it is actually perfectly normal and something they will grow out of as their legs get longer and they start walking more. At 13 months I don't think I would be overly concerned, but if you're still worried then discuss it with your pediatrician. They may also be able to refer you to ECI which is a free resource for therapy and such where they come to you to work with your child. I have friends who have used them many times for different conditions (including help with walking) and they have all been very pleased with their services. Good luck!

This is kind of late, but just to let you know...My daughter did not walk until 14 months or so. She did the same thing your son is doing, walk a few steps and fall. People noticed that she was bow legged. She is 3 now and not bow legged at all.

Hi M.,
THis happened to my daughter and it should self correct if it is a minor case, the advice I was given by her doctor as well as an orthopedic doctor is not to let her kneel down to where her butt is touching the ground. Because their bones are not so strong at this point, some how this posture ends up making them walk pidgeon toed. I would however contact the pediatrician to check it out because he may need braces. Good luck with everything

You may want to contact your pediatrician - it may just be normal growth. If not, ask for a referral to Scottish Rite Hospital for a full evaluation.

take him to a chiropractor. if you have insurance most will take it. i use a great one in mesquite. my daughter was very chubby as a baby, and it caused her to put extra pressure on her knees when she stood. it made them knock a bit. i found out it was because her hip alignment was off. some soft adjustments by the doctor, and she stands straight now. i am not sure where you live, but Dr. Liechty has 7 children and knows how to work with kids.

Tell him R. Walker sent you. He treats my family of 6

3334 N Town East Blvd
Mesquite, TX 75150-3858
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