My Strong Little Journey - Penny & Rex - Talipes Calcaneo-Valgus
Introducing the next story from my new project:
‘My Strong Little journey’
I’ve asked real Mums and Dads, with real experiences of paediatric physiotherapy to share their story with me (and you); to let their guard down, and tell it how it really is on the other side of the fence. What it feels like to be the “parent of the patient”.
Sometimes the journey will be nice and smooth and simple and all the loose ends can get tied off nicely. There is a beginning and an end. A cure even. (Like the case with Penny and Rex below).
But more often than not, having a child with a health condition can be really complex and messy. It’s a long, winding road. It can be tough on families. I’ve asked these parents to tell their story how they would’ve liked to have told their own friends and family. What they would have liked to hear themselves in the early days.
What I do know is this; these stories, no matter how small, are going to be incredibly helpful and reassuring for Mums and Dads going through similar experiences themselves, and I am sure they will also be really valuable for therapists too. Giving us the opportunity to walk in their shoes, even if just for a moment, is a wonderful gift these parents are giving.
So thank you for sharing your story today Penny, paediatric nurse and founder of Sick Happens.
Let’s hear about her Strong Little journey and her family’s experience with “Talipes Calcaneo-Valgus”
“My name is Penny and I live in Newcastle NSW.
I am surrounded by delicious men — my husband Tony, my two boys Rex (4) and Jack (2) and our crazy cavoodle Hugo.
Rex at 2 days old. He was diagnosed with ‘Bilateral Talipes Calcaneo-Valgus’ (feet turned up and out) which you can particularly see in the left foot in this image.
We were living in Melbourne at the time of Rex’s birth, and after suffering a long and torturous pregnancy his birth was uncomplicated and straight forward. I progressed quickly, and managed to have an unmedicated vaginal delivery. He was on the slightly small side, but beautifully healthy. He passed all of his pre-discharge checks, but one of the midwives wanted a physio review for his feet. She had mentioned the word talipes — but of course I had no idea what this was. In fact, I hadn’t even noticed anything wrong with his feet until she mentioned he needed physio involvement.
The physio came to review Rex in hospital, and if I’m honest the whole feet “thing” was a complete blur. All I wanted to know was were his feet ok, and was this serious?
Once the physio mentioned it was very common and able to be treated with some simple exercises I kind of tuned out. In hindsight I am so shocked I took this approach, as I am normally a research everything and ask a million questions to understand kind of gal. But I think because the physio wasn’t overly concerned, it made me not worry at all. Plus, because I have a background in healthcare (Paediatric Nursing), I figured everyone was just “ticking the box” so to speak — aka they noticed something was slightly off with Rex’s feet, so they were just reviewing him and doing a few interventions to meet their responsibilities prior to discharge.
He was given the diagnosis of bilateral talipes.
This basically means that both of his feet (=bilateral) were abnormally positioned (=talipes). His feet looked like they had been squashed up against his shin for a long time whilst I was pregnant. They were easily able to be stretched out, and he wasn’t in any pain. They just looked a bit squished and deformed. Newborns naturally remain in a curled up ball when they are born, so I guess this is why I didn’t notice it at first.
I was given a few fact sheets on talipes with some exercises to complete at home. I was also shown how to do these exercises, and instructed on how often to do them. I needed to do the exercises with each breastfeed — so lots of times, but not for long. I found the exercises really easy to do, and linking the exercise times with breastfeeds made sure I didn’t forget to do them. Rex wasn’t bothered by the exercises at all, and his feet seemed to respond rather quickly to these.
Rex today. Look at those nice straight feet. Calcaneo-Valgus sometimes resolves spontaneously, but often just needs some regular stretching prescribed by your paediatric physiotherapist.
The physio also checked out Rex’s hips during the pre-discharge check, and arranged an ultrasound for a few weeks time. She mentioned that one of his hips was a little “clicky,” but again, nothing to worry about. I also wasn’t worried about this at all, as I knew this was a common condition in newborns. I actually didn’t think anything of it until I was in the waiting room about six weeks later waiting for his ultrasound. Then I started to worry about what would happen if his hips weren’t ok. Nothing like a last minute waiting-room-google-search. Face palm. Luckily both of his hips were fine, and he didn’t need any additional intervention.
I am so thankful there weren’t any complications from his diagnosis, because I certainly didn’t think about what could happen if they didn’t resolve. I was really lucky that nothing went “wrong” because I was well and truly living in a little blasé bubble.
If I could go back in time I would have asked a lot more questions. I would have researched more about what talipes were, and what would happen if they didn’t improve with exercises. I would have liked some information on what signs to look for in toddlers when they started walking to see if there were any complications caused by the talipes. But really, the saying “you don’t know what you don’t know” really applied here.
As for now, they appear completely fine. Rex has no concerns running, riding, jumping, or crash tackling his brother. In fact, I actually don’t have any memory of his feet being reviewed by anyone after having his hips checked. I am certain it happened at some point, but I’d be lying if I said I could remember. However, his feet look normal and I don’t have any concerns about it now. Although, I will probably mention this at his next GP appointment just to make sure. Hehe.
Penny is a Registered Nurse, specialising in Paediatrics. She has over ten years of experience working with children, and also has a Masters of Nursing. She has always had a passion for working with children, but she has grown to love the family-centred care that is unique to Paediatric Nursing. As a Mum to two young boys, she knows first hand that when a child is sick it impacts the family unit dramatically. Sick Happens has been born out of her desire to empower, support and reassure parents when caring for their families. Unfortunately, there aren't many guarantees in parenting, but you can be sure our little ones will get sick from time to time - especially in their first few years of life. We also live in a society full of instant information, and it’s hard to work out what is supported by substantiated evidence. The aim of Sick Happens is to provide education with empathy; delivered in a way that is easily digested and understood.
If you’d like to learn more about Penny, and her incredible online resource ‘Sick Happens’, click here.
Note from Alana:
Penny has described a condition called ‘Positional Talipes Calcaneo-Valgus’ (TCV), a condition of the foot and ankle seen in newborns. For the majority of the time, TCV is treated with stretches and basic exercises and resolves within the first few months of life. Occasionally, in more severe cases, casting or bracing is required. For more information on TCV click here.
It is worth mentioning that TCV should not be confused with Congenital Talipes Equino-Varus (CEV), more commonly known as “Club Foot”. Occasionally CEV can also be cured with stretches if it is ‘positional’, but for many cases, babies need to be referred to a specialist, and cast in a series of plaster casts using a method called the ‘Ponsetti’ method. Treatment can go on for several weeks (sometimes longer), rehabilitation is a much longer process, and can involve surgery and braces. For more information on CEV click here.
If you have any concerns about the position of your baby’s feet, then please seek the advice of a health professional.
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