Angular Profile of the Knees of Nigerian Children in Lagos, Nigeria
Keywords:
Angular Profiles, Orthopaedic, kneesAbstract
Introduction: Angular misalignments of the knees in children are common in our environment. Many of these variations fall within normal limits. Only a few will require further investigations and treatment. During normal growth, physiological changes occur in the angle of the knees as the child grows. This phenomenon has been investigated and documented by scholars in different environments. Some similarities and differences have been noted between children of different races and environments by various authors.
Aim: This study strives to investigate the presence or absence of these findings in Nigerian children and provide local reference data to aid the management of similar cases in our environment.
Methodology: The clinical methods of assessment of knee angles were used in this study.Six hundred children aged 3-8 years (age last birthday) were selected from public and private nursery/primary schools in Lagos metropolis and had their tibiofemoral angles measured with a goniometer and their intercondylar/intermalleolar distances measured with an inextensible taperule.
Results: The 600 children were divided into six age groups for the purpose of data collation and analysis. The mean tibiofemoral angle for the six age groups was 6.0 + 8.1. A valgus inclination of 8.4 + 7.2 was noted at 3 years of age which decreased to 3.4 + 8.6o at 8 years of age. The intercondylar/intermalleolar distance was 2.5 + 3.4cm at age 3 years and 0.7 + 3.3cm at 8 years of age. The tibiofemoral angle was found to be quite correlated with the intercondylar/inermalleolar distances with a correlation coefficient of r=0.765.
Conclusion: Compared with figures from previous similar studies in other places, most of the parameters show a similar pattern of changes with growth but the degree and timing of the changes show some basic differences attributable to racial/genetic factors, methods of measurements, and other environmental factors. Figures gotten in this study is of use for clinical reference when similar cases present in our clinics in this sub-region .
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