title: Change in flatfoot of preschool-aged children: a 1-year follow-up study.
abstract: The main purpose of this study is to investigate the changes in the signs of flatfoot of preschool-aged children in a 1-year follow-up study. This study performed follow-up on a total of 580 preschool-aged children (boys, 297 children; girls, 283 children) with a median age of 54 (range 36-71 months), and the average follow-up period was 11.8 months. This study used the Chippaux-Smirak index (CSI) of footprint as the assessment tool, and CSI > 62.70 % was used as the standard for determining whether preschool-aged children suffered from flatfoot. The results showed that the signs of flatfoot of preschool-aged children improved with increasing age. At the 1-year follow-up, the average CSI was 5.1 % lower, and the proportion of children with flatfoot was 14 % lower. The follow-up on the change in the signs of flatfoot showed that 37.6 % of the children originally with flatfoot had improved to normal, verifying that flatfoot indeed improves with increasing age. However, the results also showed that 9.9 % of the children who originally had normal feet had developed flatfoot with increasing age, which deserves subsequent investigation. The results of the follow-up also showed that children who were relatively younger, male, obese, and experiencing excessive joint laxity were more likely to experience the signs of flatfoot.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The 1-year follow-up found that some preschool-aged children with flatfoot may develop normal feet, while children with normal feet may begin to experience the signs. Relevant factors affecting flatfoot in preschool-aged children continue to require further clarification.
authors.affiliation: Physical Therapy Room, Chung Shan Medical University Hospital, No.110, Sec. 1, Jianguo N. Rd., Taichung City, 402, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Kun-Chung
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Li-Chen
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Tung
authors.forename: Chih-Jung
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Yeh
authors.forename: Jeng-Feng
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Jing-Fu
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Kuo
authors.forename: Chun-Hou
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D015992:Body Mass Index; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D005413:Flatfoot / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007593:Joint Instability / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D015995:Prevalence; D012075:Remission, Spontaneous