Prevalence of lower limb deformities among primary school students

Abstract

Abstract Background Lower limb deformities could affect child's quality of life and may worsen with time. This work aims to study the prevalence of lower limb deformities among primary school students in our governorate. Methods This cross-sectional descriptive study was carried out on 4689 students attending 12 public primary schools during the academic year 2019–2020.Complete clinical examination was done for picking of cases of genu varum, genu valgum, genu recurvatum, flat foot, pes cavus, hallux valgus, in-toeing, and lower limb discrepancy, and x-ray on both feet, pelvis, and full-length lower limb was requested. Results This cross-sectional descriptive study included 4689 students. The prevalence of lower limb (LL) deformities was 16.61%. One hundred twenty-three (2.62%) children had a positive history of musculoskeletal pain, 0.09% had genu varum, 0.11% had genu valgum, 0.75% had Genu recurvatum, 0.03% had LL discrepancy, 13.86% had flexible flat foot, 1.22% had rigid flat foot, 0.23% had pes cavus, 1.04 % had in-toeing, 0.06% had hallux varus, and 0.11% had hallux valgus. Conclusions Lower limb deformities are a considerable problem in primary school students that need early diagnosis because it could affect child’s future, health, and career. Further studies are needed to investigate spinal deformity, vit D level, calcium level, foot wear, and school bag weight as hidden factors.