Re: Question on my son's inset ... Rocker Bottom feet?

[Guest guest]

Welcome to our group and congratulations on your son!

If you use the keyword of " rockerbottom " and search the archives,

you'll see quite a bit of discussion about this.

Rockerbottom is the breakdown of the bones of the midfoot-

presumably for most of the kids here it would be caused by the

clubfoot deformity not being completely corrected and the doctor

pushing up on the front (toe end) of the foot (either with casts or

the brace) causing a " u " shape in the foot. Stretching the foot

improperly can actually cause rockerbottom also if one stretches the

foot by only pushing up on the ball/toes and not supporting the

entire length of the foot with the hand.

My daughter, under the care of the original (non-Ponseti) doctor,

started to develop rockerbottom also from having an uncorrected foot

and being placed in an AFO brace when she was 3.5 months old. This

was prior to us seeking out Dr. Ponseti.

Who is your doctor? Does she claim to be using the Ponseti method

and how long has she been using it? What region are you in?

Perhaps we can refer you to another doctor in your area for a second

opinion. It sounds to me like Zachary's foot isn't corrected. If

you join the CFPics group on yahoo, you can send us pictures of his

foot if you'd like...or put them on a free website (like Yahoo's

photo website).

In short- yes, rockerbottom is a huge concern and you'll want to get

it addressed if that is indeed what is going on with his foot. Even

if it's not rockerbottom, from what you've described, I'd recommend

a second opinion from a doctor who is very experienced in the

Ponseti method.

Let us know how/if we can help.

Regards,

& (3-16-00)

left clubfoot, switched to Ponseti method at 4 mo. old

http://ponseticlubfoot.freeservers.com/

[Guest guest]

I just wanted to add to what told you. My daughter has had

rockerbottom for about 2 years (that I know of although it could

have been there all along). Because I followed the advice to leave

it alone now she is facing surgery. A simple xray will show if

indeed there is a bone causing the appearance or if it is just

normal baby fat. If your daughters heel has not dropped I would

lean towards saying yes it could be rockerbottom. mentioned

pushing up on the toes or ball of the foot can cause the condition.

However in my daughters case it was caused by her hindfoot deformity

not being properly corrected. Tightness in the achilles tendon and

other ligaments cause the heels to be pulled up(not drop) and this

in turn causes the bone of the midfoot to point downwards as well.

My daughters rockerbottom showed up as a little lump on each arch.

Because my daughter is too old she cannot have another tenotomy

done. Since your baby is so young the problem should be pretty easy

to fix....I would definetly find a second opinion though because

rockerbottom is usually caused by inadequate treatment to begin

with. I know some Drs will recast to correct it. Everything should

be fine with good follow up treatment!

>

>

> Hello all. I'm new to the board and I've enjoyed reading

everyone's

> post.

>

> My wife and I have a four-month old son, Zachary, who was born

with

> bilateral club feet. He's been in his brace for about two months

and

> he's doing really well with it. He pretty much wears it around the

> clock, except for bath time.

>

> Last week, we went in for our most recent check-up and we got some

> confusing news. His left foot looks great, but his right foot (the

> more severe of the two) looks a little different. The heel doesn't

> look like it has completely dropped and the place where his arch

> would normally be is pretty flat. In fact, it almost looks like it

> bows out the other way a little bit.

>

> Our doctor didn't seem overly concerned but she does want to see

us

> back in a month. She mentioned that it almost looked like the

> beginning of what she called rocker-bottom foot. We asked if it

was

> bad, and she said it was just " different. "

>

> Not sure what to make of that. Has anyone had any similar

experiences?

[Guest guest]

My son's foot does the same thing. His left looks great but the heel on the

right just looks a smidge higher. We had an appointment 2 wks ago and I asked

his ortho about it and he said it's still just a touch tighter than the left but

will work itself out. He rotated his feet and could move both of them past the

normal point which I guess is good. He's been doing great in the shoes but I

also thought it kinda looked like the beginning of rockerbottom. Basically I

think it's only part of the foot is corrected and the other part begins to

compensate. He wasn't worried though. I'm going to watch it myself.

austinwriter jason@...> wrote:

Hello all. I'm new to the board and I've enjoyed reading everyone's

post.

My wife and I have a four-month old son, Zachary, who was born with

bilateral club feet. He's been in his brace for about two months and

he's doing really well with it. He pretty much wears it around the

clock, except for bath time.

Last week, we went in for our most recent check-up and we got some

confusing news. His left foot looks great, but his right foot (the

more severe of the two) looks a little different. The heel doesn't

look like it has completely dropped and the place where his arch

would normally be is pretty flat. In fact, it almost looks like it

bows out the other way a little bit.

Our doctor didn't seem overly concerned but she does want to see us

back in a month. She mentioned that it almost looked like the

beginning of what she called rocker-bottom foot. We asked if it was

bad, and she said it was just " different. "

Not sure what to make of that. Has anyone had any similar experiences?

[Guest guest]

We had a similar experience. Our son's foot (unilateral) had mild rocker

bottom before he had his tenotomy. Has your son had the tenotomy?? Lori

_____

From: austinwriter

Sent: Thursday, February 10, 2005 6:49 PM

To: nosurgery4clubfoot

Subject: Question on my son's inset ... Rocker Bottom

feet?

Hello all. I'm new to the board and I've enjoyed reading everyone's

post.

My wife and I have a four-month old son, Zachary, who was born with

bilateral club feet. He's been in his brace for about two months and

he's doing really well with it. He pretty much wears it around the

clock, except for bath time.

Last week, we went in for our most recent check-up and we got some

confusing news. His left foot looks great, but his right foot (the

more severe of the two) looks a little different. The heel doesn't

look like it has completely dropped and the place where his arch

would normally be is pretty flat. In fact, it almost looks like it

bows out the other way a little bit.

Our doctor didn't seem overly concerned but she does want to see us

back in a month. She mentioned that it almost looked like the

beginning of what she called rocker-bottom foot. We asked if it was

bad, and she said it was just " different. "

Not sure what to make of that. Has anyone had any similar experiences?