Some patients may benefit instead from a tibial osteotomy, in which the tibia (shinbone) is realigned. This is known as a distal femoral osteotomy (DFO). In most cases, the femur (thighbone) is treated. In severe cases and in skeletally mature adolescents and adults (any person whose bones are no longer growing), an osteotomy – in which bone is cut and then realigned – may be needed to straighten the leg. In the growing child, guided-growth minimal-incision surgery may be used to encourage the leg to gradually grow straight. If a gradual correction does not occur, surgery may be recommended. Treatment for mild cases of knock knee in children or adolescents may include braces to help bones grow in the correct position. If knock knee is caused by an underlying disease or infection, that condition will be addressed before any orthopedic correction begins. When this does not work, or if the patient is an adult at the time of diagnosis, a knee-realignment osteotomy is done to prevent or delay the need for knee replacement. How is knock knee treated?įor mild cases of knock knee in children or adolescents, bracing may reposition the knees. These are radiological images of the leg from hip down to the ankle, which help the doctor locate the exact location and mechanical axis of the deformity. Standing-alignment X-ray or EOS images will help confirm the diagnosis. They will also do a physical examination of the legs and gait. How is knock knee diagnosed?Īn orthopedic specialist will review the patient’s medical and family history, any pre-existing conditions and current health. These forces can cause pain, knee instability (including complex patellofemoral instability) and arthritis. In particular, adult patients who have been knock-kneed for many years often overload the outside (lateral compartment) of the knee, and stretch the inside ( medial collateral ligament – MCL). This excessive force can lead to pain, further bone deformity, knee instability and progressive degeneration of the knee joint. In people of all age groups who have knock knees, one or both knees is abnormally overloaded. patients or parents may be unhappy with aestheticsĪ person may also have other symptoms from an underlying condition that is causing the knock-knee syndrome.Surgery may be needed to treat the condition. If the angle of the legs from hip to foot falls outside normal patterns, worsens over time, or is present on only one side of the body, this suggests a person has a more serious form of knock knees, and further evaluation by an orthopedic specialist may be necessary. Knock knees that remain outside of these normal developmental growth patterns may be caused by disease, infection or other conditions. During normal growth phases, the child's legs will straighten out by age seven to eight. By about twp to three years of age, their legs have usually begun to angle inward, making them knock-kneed. Children are typically bowlegged until they begin walking at around 12 to 18 months. Most children experience normal angular changes in their legs as they grow. Knock knees that persist beyond six years of age, are severe or affect one leg significantly more than the other may be a sign of knock-knee syndrome. This usually corrects itself as the child grows. Temporarily knocked knees are part of a standard developmental growth stage for most children.
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