
If your child is not growing normally in heightĪdults who just recently started developing knock knees should not delay seeing an orthopedist, as it’s usually caused by a treatable medical condition.If your child has knee pain or hip pain.If your child has an abnormal walking pattern.If one knee is obviously more affected than the other.If the knock knees start before 2 years of age.If the knock knees persist after 7 years of age.However, if one or more of the following concerning features develop, you should get an orthopedist’s assessment to rule out any underlying conditions causing knock knees: If your child follows a pattern similar to the one described, then it’s completely normal. By about 7 or 8 years of age, the legs will have become straight again if your child’s growth is normal and undisturbed. As they become 2-3 years old, the legs start tilting inward, which is the stage of “knock knees”. As they start walking by this age, their legs straighten. Infants usually have bowed legs until they reach 12-18 months of age. The knee angles will normally change as your child grows. Knock knees are a normal part of your child’s development process. Should you worry about knock knees in your child? Other specific symptoms are usually related to the underlying cause of knock knees, like redness and swelling in case of an infection. This can lead to their straining, and patients might develop pain in the ankles, feet, and hips. Since knock knees can ruin the body’s normal balance, other muscles and ligaments in the body will work extra hard to restore a normal posture. Patients with pathologic knock knees can have one or more of the following symptoms: Treatment options include corrective surgery, physical therapy, and lifestyle changes. Treating pathologic knock knees early can help prevent future complications (like osteoarthritis) and deformities. These are almost always associated with other medical conditions like obesity, vitamin D deficiency, calcium deficiency, arthritis, or knee joint infection or trauma. Pathologic knock knees are those that are severe, persist beyond 8 years of age, or start developing first during adulthood.

In most cases, knock knees go away on their own as your toddler grows, and their legs become straight by their 8th year. According to one study, up to 75% of children aged 3 to 5 have genu valgum.

When patients with knock knees stand up straight, the knees appear bumping together while the ankles and feet are far apart. Knock knees, also known as genu valgum, is a term used to describe incorrect knee alignment. Nevertheless, in adults and some children, it can be a sign of underlying illness and needs an orthopedist’s assessment. It’s usually a physiologic condition and part of your child’s normal growth process. Patients with genu valgum have an excessive inward alignment of their knees.

Knock knees, or genu valgum, is abnormal knee alignment that is frequently seen in children, and less commonly in adults.
