Leg Cramps In Children
[Leg cramps in children.]
(The exact question has been lost but was about a boy with leg cramps taking a long time to diagnose and difficult to wear, expensive orthotics.)
Glad to be of help… actually leg cramps and foot pain is the second most frequently asked question I get from viewers of my website – second only to Tonsillectomy.
The more I research the topic for all the questions I’m asked the more I realize just how UNDER-diagnosed the problem is in children and teens; and just what an amazingly wide range of skill level and treatment patterns the doctors who treat children have.
Unfortunately, I hear all to commonly that a child’s doctor has just been “watchfully ignoring” the problem. Then when they are “forced” to face it the treatment is frequently not complete.
Then, when treatment is initiated, the child may have experienced the pain for so long that they think it is normal! So, when they obtain even just a little help it seems adequate – as you allude to in your question.
There are many styles of orthotics; from those naturally inside cowboy boots, to “Dr Scholl’s”, to hard pieces of bent plastic, to good flexible-but-firm polymer with a substantial arch (Theta) angle. [Do a Google search for “Theta Orthotics” – to see what I mean.]
They are not inexpensive – so be sure and get the best ones from the beginning.