Clubfoot, also known as Talipes, is a disorder of the foot and ankle which causes children to be born with one or both feet turned inwards and upwards. Without treatment the feet become fixed in this position which makes walking either impossible or very painful.

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Karen Moss founded STEPS after her son was born with clubfoot.

“Congenital Clubfoot is the most common limb birth deformity and more frequent than Downs Syndrome or Cleft Palate. At least 1 in 835 babies are born with congenital clubfoot. In some populations it’s 3-6 times the average,” she said.

Karen added that for reasons that were not entirely clear yet, black children in Southern and Eastern Africa were 2.5 more at risk of clubfoot.

“An estimated 2,000 children are born in South Africa every year with clubfoot, across all race groups. The problem is not so much in the condition as in the lack of treatment. It is possible to reverse clubfoot with non-invasive treatment, but many people don’t know this,” said Karen, who was inspired to find alternatives to surgery to help her own son.

International Clubfoot Awareness week
The first annual International Clubfoot Awareness week takes place from 3 to 9 June 2008.

In part, it celebrates the 94th birthday of Dr Ponseti, an orthopaedic surgeon in Iowa, USA, who pioneered non-invasive treatment for clubfoot.

International Clubfoot Awareness week is testament to all those feet that can stand flat on the ground and jump, hop, and run thanks to the work he has been doing since the 1950’s.

To help children born with this disability, contact Karen Moss at STEPS (karen@steps.org.za) to find out how to sponsor a child’s clubfoot treatment.

For more information visit www.steps.org.za

(STEPS, June 2008)
 

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