Expecting baby with club feet... HELP!

J Lo - posted on 12/18/2011

Hi , My son is nine years old .We are past the casting and brace wearing stage ,But we have a shoe dilemma his one foot is three sizes different .So I am looking for someone to maybe trade shoes its his right foot,

Tanya - posted on 05/16/2011

Hi Kailey
I was born in 1972 , with a club foot , I had a pot on for 3 - 6 months & it straightened my foot , I was one of the first babies to try this method on , it will work , I have a weak ankle now as when I was a teen ager I went over on my anlke alot & it takes a while to heal , so now I tend to wear boots alot to protect my ankle He will be fine .How is your little boy now ? Take care Tanya xxx

Jan - posted on 10/08/2009

Kailey, I was just wondering how you are now doing & if your baby is due yet, or if you'd already given birth?? I too have a c of m site... in the CLUB? (kids with talipes), if you would like to join & read our conversations too, it may help further. My son Adam was born with bilateral talipes 19 years ago, today he does karate, boxing, football...

Lyndsey - posted on 09/30/2009

Hi Kailey,
I know how frightening it is to find out your baby is going to be born with clubfoot. My son was born with bilateral clubfoot and even though I had found out this was going to be the case when I was 4 months pregnant it was still hard!
Oliver was first casted at 8 days old and we went once a week until he was 2 months old to get new casts. I had to soak the casts off the night before and I would definitely recommend having someone help you with that if possible. I had to do it by myself (my husband worked nights) and although it gets easier with time, it is very difficult at first.
At two months old Oliver had his first set of KAFO braces. These were orthodic braces that kept his knees, ankles, and feet in line. He wore them 23 hours a day until he was 8 months old. At that point he only had to wear them at night. Oliver is now 13 mos old and is currently out of the braces. We go back in November to make sure he doesnt need to go to the Dennis Brown bar.
Our dr does not follow the Ponsetti method exactly, although the castings were very similar. However, we have had Amazing results and have been so blessed. The Dr said Oliver's feet are the best results they have ever had from a baby.
I would recommend finding a dr you are comfortable with and can trust. You will find lots of advice from other moms who have been through it or are going through it. They are great sources of support! However, don't start questioning yourself or your doctor because of what other moms say. I started to do this at one point because of other moms telling me I needed to find someone who stuck strictly with the Ponsetti method. However, I felt very comfortable with our dr and I am so glad we have seen him. Oliver is doing great! Your baby will be ok too!
We are always here for you!

Chariti - posted on 09/22/2009

When my son was first diagnosed I was devastated (I was 18 weeks pregnant and I had only found out I was pregnant 4 weeks before) but he's almost two now and although we are still dealing with it, he's doing great! He has bilateral clubbed feet which means both are shaped like golf clubs (that's literally where the name comes from) He had health issues when he was born so we didn't see about his feet until he was two months old. From then it was 6 six weeks of casts and an achillies cord lengthening surgery. Several types of braces till we found the right ones and we have another surgery in January. He didn't walk crawl until he was 12 months old and didn't walk until he was 18 months old. But now he runs with braces which are the equivilent of ski boots on his feet. Kids are amazing!

The best piece of advice I can give you is to go to Shriners Hospital for Children. Find your local Shriners and apply right now. They are AWESOME!! They don't charge for anything and they defiantely know what they are doing! Also, the way I bathed him was I put a couple towels on the counter by the sink and just pour the water right on him, it's a little messy but you will have a clean kid :) If you have any questions feel free to ask, I don't have anyone to talk to about this that can relate to me :)

Amanda - posted on 09/08/2009

Kailey, first bit of advice....breathe!! lol

I found out my daughter had clubfoot when I was 6 months preg...both feet and right one was very severe and I remeber freaking out but the more info you have the better off you are.

When she was 2 hours old they casted her, both legs up to the top of her legs, broke my heart!! but they are so resiliant..they cast them early as their bones are softer and easier to manipulate..very important to start castings asap! Gianna also had the heel chord tenotomy which has benefitted her greatly, she had that done when she was 6 weeks old, she then went to Dennis Browne boots and bar on 23 hours a day and then gradually as she got older, the timing was less and less, she is now almost 3 and doing amazing!!

I was a first time Mom also and very, very scared, but one thing I remember a doctor telling once was that clubfoot was way harder on the parents than the baby and to look at my little girl now running around makes it so worthwhile!! :)

If you need any info or anything you can message me...also, I didnt have much money when we were dealing with it either and the Shriners helped us out alot, they paid for 2 pairs of her boots and bars so there is help out there :)

Nicki - posted on 09/06/2009

First of all, relax!! My son, also Liam was born on Christmas day, with a club foot (right foot only). We were not expecting this. Liam saw the orthopedist for the first time when he was 6 days old and the first cast was put on. We returned every week for 6 weeks to have the cast changed. At that point, they did a heel cord elongation, which basically means they cut the achilles tendon, which in young children will rejuvenate itself, After that it was 3 weeks with the final cast. The time with the cast wasn't that difficult, I very quickly got used to nursing and hold him with the cast, really, hardly noticed it most of the time. The only time is was an issue was bath time . . . I recommend, if you can, having someone to help you with bath time. I found it too difficult to hold baby, clean baby and keep the cast out of the water without help!



The next step in Liam's treatment was Denise Brown boots and bar. (Although there are different boots/bar combinations available, this is the one our Dr choose.) Liam had to wear it for 23 hours a day for the first 3 months. That was difficult for us, Liam really hated them! But now, he just has to wear them at night and he is fine with them.



He will continue to wear the boots and bar at night until he is 4 to prevent a recurrance.



There were some days when Liam would be so upset at having the shoes on that I would just sit and cry. I felt like a horrible mommy because I was making him cry when I put them on, and I knew that I could so easily make him stop by taking them off. I just had to keep telling myself over and over again that it would be worth it when he was older to see him walk and run like any other child.



Good luck with everything!