Blount’s disease is a condition that causes bowing of the legs. Bowing of the legs is very common in children under the age of 2 and usually improves by age 3. Infantile Blount’s disease causes the bowing to persist or to worsen after the age of 2. Bowing may occur in one leg or both. It is caused by an abnormality of the growth plate at the top of the shin bone, just under the knee joint. An x-ray will typically show this abnormality by 3 years of age. Treatment for infantile Blount’s disease ranges from bracing, guided growth surgery and surgeries to cut and realign the shin bone, depending on the age of the child and the severity of the disease.
Adolescent Blount disease presents as bowing in one or both legs that occurs in children over the age of 10. It is also the result of an abnormality of the growth plate at the top of the shin bone. X-rays will show the extent of the growth plate abnormality and help guide treatment. Treatment may include guided growth, or surgeries to cut and realign the shin bone, depending on the severity of the disease.
