My Child is Toe Walking

Children who have just started walking may take up toe walking. This is in fact normal and temporary and most children adopt natural gait in time. However, if the toe walking continues into 2 years of age, it can be a sign of a problem.

The cause for toe walking is not known and it mostly disappears in time. Though rarely, toe walking may be associated to cerebral palsy. For some unforeseeable reasons, the child can be exposed to brain damage during pregnancy, birth, or after birth. If toe-walking is idiopathic; that is, if your child is toe walking for no known reason, this often indicates one-sided involvement. Cerebral palsy patients, however, generally suffer from two-sided involvement.

Cerebral palsy may develop as a result of viral infections during pregnancy, toxoplasma, umbilical cord compression, blood incompitability, and asphyxiation of the baby during birth. Concordantly, the baby can experience spastic paralysis, balancing problems, developmental disorders, and mental deficiency. Early diagnosis of cerebral palsy is of critical importance. Nonetheless, mild cerebral palsy may go unnoticed.

As scary as they may sound, potential problems mentioned above should not dishearten parents. The possibility of any toe walking child to have brain issues is very unlikely. Still, parents should observe toe walking children. Most of the time, toe walking gradually turns to walking with feet on the ground. However, if toe walking does not progress into natural gait in time, it would be useful to refer to an orthopaedist and a neurologist.