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Current Pediatric Reviews

Editor-in-Chief

ISSN (Print): 1573-3963
ISSN (Online): 1875-6336

Review Article

The Limping Child: A Guide for the Trainees

Author(s): Norah AlRohaimi, Hamad Alkhalaf and Jubran Alqanatish*

Volume 20, Issue 4, 2024

Published on: 23 May, 2023

Page: [426 - 433] Pages: 8

DOI: 10.2174/1573396320666230406085533

Price: $65

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Abstract

Limping is a common presenting complaint in children. Despite this, it remains to be a diagnostic challenge for treating physicians due to an expanded list of etiologies. It arises from a spectrum of disorders, ranging from physiological variations of gait at different stages of development to systemic causes, such as inflammatory diseases or musculoskeletal infections. On rare occasions, non-musculoskeletal causes could result in limping. The diagnostic challenge increases in younger age children where a detailed physical examination that helps identify the exact source of pathology may not be possible. In older patients who have a well-developed gait cycle, the physical assessment might be easier. Clinical assessment in a child presenting with a limp includes gait analysis, which is essential to guide the appropriate request of diagnostic laboratory tests and imaging studies. In this paper, we provide a practical guide for a trainee in General Pediatric and Pediatric Rheumatology on an approach to a limping child, aiming to identify the common causes of limping and to describe normal and abnormal gait cycles. We also discuss other diagnostic considerations in the assessment of these children.

Keywords: Child, approach, limping, gait, pain, weakness, deformity.

Graphical Abstract
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