Growing Pains in Children

Growing Pains in Children A lot of children may experience pain in their legs, especially if they are active and play lots of sport. It usually gets better on its own, but they can last for several months, even years! The child will usually complain of pain in the heel, especially squeezing the sides of the heel. It may be more painful first thing in the morning. There may also be more pain associated with running, jumping and playing sport – during and after.

Sever’s Disease or Calcaneal Apophysitis is the most common cause of heel pain in the growing child and is due to overuse and repetitive micro-trauma of the growth plate within the heel bone (calcaneus). Sever’s is most common between the ages 8 to 14 and is more common in boys than girls.

Although every child goes through the stage of having an open growth plate in their heel, not every child will develop pain. (A growth plate is a layer of cartilage usually found at the end of a bone, allowing the bone to grow in length. It is weaker and more vulnerable to injury than the rest of the bone. When the child has finished growing the growth plate disappears and the bone becomes one complete bone).

Contributing Factors to Growing Pains

There are various factors that can contribute to growing pains in children such as

Sudden increase in activity or high volume of exercise – strenuous activities such as running, jumping and sports may result in muscle tiredness and pain in the feet and legs.
Flat feet – children with flat feet may experience more stress on their legs and are often more prone to suffering growing pains.
Tight muscles –tight muscles place more stress on tendons, bones and joints and can contribute to more generalised pain.
Poor footwear choices -lack of shock absorption and support can lead to discomfort.
Joint hypermobility – when the ligaments are “more stretch” than they should be, they cannot provide adequate support to the joints. This means that muscles in the feet and legs have to work harder to provide stability, often resulting in generalised pain.

Management for Children with Heel Pian

Calcaneal apophysitis is a self-limiting condition – meaning it will go away completely when the two parts of bony growth join together. There are no known long-term complications associated with children’s heel pain.

However, calcaneal apophysitis can be very painful and limit the child’s sporting ability while they are waiting for it to go away. Symptoms may last for several months and may recur on many occasions until the growth plate fuses.

The best way to manage it is to reduce activity but not completely stop. You can ice the painful area after activity and make sure footwear is as supportive as it can be. A strap across the top of the arch area or laces can reduce the traction force of the Achilles Tendon on the heel bone. If the symptoms are not improving, then the underlying biomechanics need to be addressed. This may include cushioned heel lifts to reduce the strain on the growth plate or bespoke foot orthoses to control abnormal foot function.

I hope you find some value in this month’s blog. If you would like your child to have just a check-up or have a particular issue with his/her feet, our staff at Medipod Clinics can help you. Our experienced podiatrists will treat your feet with the respect and attention they deserve. For more information about our range of treatments, please contact us on 01455 246100. We would love to help you with any foot health issues you or your child may have.

Thank you for reading – Growing Pains in Children.

Faye Vogiatzoglou
Clinical Director

http://medipodclinics.com/