The natural history of "bow legs" and "knock knees" in childhood

Since it is still quite prevalent in many communities to see cases of bow legs and knock knees treated with a variety of different shoes and contraptions, the author was prompted to do a retrospective review of patients primarily complaining of either bow legs or knock knees in childhood. The data generated was then compared with a large number of consecutive operations done at Akron Children's Hospital Medical Center, and with data on 600 control normal males and females who did not complain about their knees. Based on a review of 265 children with bow legs and 336 with knock knees, this comparison allowed for the definition of the natural history of these conditions. It was found that treatment was superfluous, unnecessary, and did not alter the natural history. It was found that, in children under two years of age, there is a distinct "varoid" phase that is subsequently followed by a "valgoid" phase to age ten. By skeletal maturity, only minor degrees of bow legs or knock knees were present, and no case necessitated any further attention.