My Child Walks With Their Toes Pointed Inward: Should I Worry?

During early development, you marvel at your child’s milestones — first smile, first words, and first steps. While each of these achievements brings a smile to your face, you’re wondering whether an issue with intoeing, or pigeon toes, is cause for concern.

The first thing we want you to know about pigeon toes is that they’re quite common and most kids grow out of the pediatric condition. 

The second point that Dr. John Schoppe and the team here at Advanced Ankle & Foot want to make is that there are different drivers of pigeon toes and intoeing, which we get into here. 

Early pigeon toes

If your child came into the world with feet (or one foot) that are C-shaped and the toes point inward, this is likely due to metatarsus adductus. This condition is often the result of a certain position inside the uterus.

In most cases, the foot corrects itself during the first 6 months of an infant’s life. If the C-shape is severe and still present at 6-9 months, we might want to explore casting or special shoes to guide the feet into their proper shapes.

Pigeon toes that start in the shin bone

If your child’s pigeon toes or intoeing become evident when they start walking, usually between the ages of 1 and 2, the issue is likely due to tibial torsion.

With tibial torsion, the shin bone rotates inward, which may have occurred in utero. Some people notice tibial torsion right away, but most of the time, the condition becomes more obvious when a child is learning to take their first steps.

Like metatarsus adductus, tibial torsion typically corrects itself with a little time as the bone rotates around to a straighter position. In fact, most kids grow out of tibial torsion quickly, often before they start school.

If the tibial torsion doesn’t correct itself by the time your child reaches 8-10 years old, and they’re having problems walking because of it, we may have to explore a surgical option, but this isn’t a common outcome.

Intoeing due to thigh bone rotation

Moving up the leg, sometimes an inward rotation in the thigh bone, or femur, can lead to what we call femoral anteversion. This type of pigeon toe is also common and affects up to 10% of kids, usually around the age of 3.

Like the other roads to pigeon toes we’ve reviewed, femoral anteversion often corrects itself on its own, often spontaneously. 

If your child’s thigh bone is still rotated inward by the time they reach 10 years old and it’s affecting how they move, corrective surgery is an option. 

Ultimately, the key to dealing with pigeon toes is to understand that, in most cases, the problem will correct itself. We’ve also learned that early bracing, targeted exercises, and special shoes aren’t always a good solution. In fact, we often leave well enough to let your child’s body do its own course correction.

Still, these are pediatric conditions that we want to track, just to be sure, so it’s a good idea to come see for an evaluation of your child’s intoeing.

For expert pediatric foot care, please contact our office in Columbus, Georgia, to schedule an appointment.