title: Prevalence of hallux valgus among youth population in Lagos, Nigeria.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  This study was aimed at evaluating the prevalence of Hallux Valgus (HV) and related foot problems among the youth population in Lagos, Nigeria.
  
  
  METHODS
  A structured questionnaire was administered to 1, 200 subjects from 10 secondary schools and undergraduate students of the College of Medicine University of Lagos, Lagos, Nigeria. The participants were requested to provide information on demographic data, severity of HV, and the functional limitation imposed on the participants by HV. Nine hundred and seventy (970) of the 979 returned questionnaires were analyzed using descriptive statistics.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The prevalence of HV in this study was 15.4% of which 43.6% and 56.4% were male and female respectively. 36 (3.7%) out of total number of participants had bilateral HV (both feet), 57 (5.9%) and 56 (5.8%) had HV on left and right foot only respectively. Eighty four (25.2%) of the 333 (34.3%) subjects that complained of pain at the first metatarsophalangeal joint had HV. Inability to stand for long periods due to pain at the first metatarsophalangeal joint was reported by 90 (9.3%) participants, while 136 (14.0%) reported inability to walk long distances.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Prevalence of HV among youths in Lagos, Nigeria is low. HV is more common among females and its prevalence increases with age. More attention should be focused on foot pain and deformities. Preventive measures and education on the HV deformity is advocated.
authors: Department of Physiotherapy, College of Medicine, University of Lagos, Nigeria. toyosialexowoeye@yahoo.com
authors: B A
authors: BA
authors: Owoeye
authors: S R
authors: SR
authors: Akinbo
authors: A L
authors: AL
authors: Aiyegbusi
authors: M O
authors: MO
authors: Ogunsola
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D005528:Foot / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006215:Hallux Valgus / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008297:Male; D008683:Metatarsophalangeal Joint / Q000503:physiopathology*; D009549:Nigeria / Q000453:epidemiology; D010146:Pain / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology*; D015995:Prevalence; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D017678:Sex Distribution; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult