21 Jul 😬Is your child with Autistic Spectrum Disorder walking on their tip toes all the time?🥴Been told that your child will grow out of their toe walking but you notice that their feet look worse over time!
Toe-walking is an abnormal walking pattern that can be seen in children during development. The majority of toe-walking cases will regress naturally within six months or after two years of age; children who continue beyond this time are diagnosed with persistent toe-walking. A 2019 study of 2,221,009 children, found a greater prevalence of toe-walking in children with Autistic Spectrum Disorder as compared with typically developing children. The study also showed that children with Autism and toe-walking receive surgical correction for their toe walking at nearly triple the rate of children without a diagnosis of Autism who toe-walk.😱
3 Key Reasons why it is important to correct toe walking in children as soon as possible:
🦶1. Under 5 years old, foot bones are soft and malleable. Bones are shaped and formed by the forces that pull or push on them. After 5 years old, the foot bones solidify and become hard in the shape that they are formed. Toe walking causes foot bones to deform over time resulting in over pronated ankle joints, collapsed foot arches and turned out feet.
🦶2. Toe walking affects a child’s gross motor skills development because it is less stable to be on tip toes. Children who toe walk will struggle to run efficiently, stand on one leg, jump, hop, skip and ride a bike. They will also tend to trip and fall more often when running.
🦶3. Toe walking places unnatural forces thorough the ankle, knee, hip joints and lower back. Over time, a child will experience, knee pain, hip pain and low back pain.
These long term secondary complications can be avoided by treating toe walking with Paediatric Physiotherapy and Serial casting. 😁To find out how we can help correct your child’s toe walking, ring My Favourite Physio 📱on (02) 9790 4233 or DM us @myfavouritephysio today!💪
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