Plantar pressures and gait parameters: a study of foot shape and limb rotations in children.

The most frequent referral diagnosis of childhood to an orthopaedic department is a limb rotational anomaly which manifests itself as either an abnormality of gait or flatfeet. The child is usually asymptomatic, the anxiety being generated in the minds of the parents. One hundred normal children were studied using a Pedobarograph to assess underfoot pressures, and a simple walkway to measure dynamic gait parameters. The results have been correlated with age, and the trends suggest that the pedobarograms may be of use in the prognostication of lower limb rotations. The methods, which are totally noninvasive and can be carried out in the clinic, have the added advantage of reassuring parents that "something is being done."