Treatment of idiopathic increased femoral anteversion in children and adolescents – a perspective

Rotational problems of the lower extremities affect a vast number of infants and children, whereas increased femoral anteversion (inward rotation) is the most frequent cause of intoeing in school-aged children. Femoral anteversion is defined by the angle of the femoral neck in relation to the femoral shaft in the coronal plane, whereas the degree of anteversion is greatest in infancy and gradually decreases towards skeletal maturity in most children. In about 15 % of all children increased femoral anteversion persists into adulthood. In cases of excessive anteversion gait problems, hip and/or knee pain are common. Derotational osteotomy of the femur is an established treatment for the condition. However, there is a lack of knowledge and clear evidence when to perform surgery and how this affects function and pain in these patients. The current paper is not based on a complete literature review and, therefore, does not fulfill the criteria of a review article. However, the article is based on the authors’ in-depth knowledge and a rapid review of the literature, and it can be defined as a scholarly article providing a perspective on the condition.