Physical Examination and Computed Tomography in Children with Toe in Gait

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To determine the correlation between the physical examination and the computed tomography of femoral anteversion and tibial internal torsion. METHOD: The angle of internal and external rotation of hip for femoral anteversion and thigh-foot angle for tibial internal torsion were measured by a rehabilitation physician for 116 young children with toe in gait. Within a week after the physical examination, the angle of femoral anteversion and tibial internal torsion were measured by computed tomography for comparison. RESULTS: Two-hundred thirty-two lower limbs of 116 children (64 girls and 52 boys) included in this study whose mean age was 6.4+/-2.7 years for girls and 6.8+/-2.8 years for boys. The Pearson correlation coefficient between the angle of internal rotation of the hip and the femoral anteversion measured by computed tomography showed 0.62 in right side and 0.55 in left side, an indication of significant correlation (p<0.01). The Pearson correlation coefficient between the thigh-foot angle and the tibial internal torsion measured by computed tomography showed 0.50 in right side, 0.42 in left side, an indication of significant correlation (p<0.01). CONCLUSION: Children with toe-in gauts showed a significant correlation between finding of physical exam (i.e. TFA and femoral internal torsion angle) and those of CT omages (i.e. tibial torsion angle and femoral torsion angle).