Knock knees

At Children’s Hospital Boston, we know that the first step to treating your child’s knock knees is to form a timely, complete and accurate diagnosis. To diagnose your child’s knock knees, the doctor will conduct a physical exam. During the exam, the doctor will take your child’s complete prenatal, birth and family medical history.

Knock knees become apparent when a child stands with her legs straight and toes pointed forward. Your child’s doctor can determine the severity of her knock knees by observing the position of her legs, knees and ankles, and by measuring the distance between her inner ankle bones—the condition is considered more severe the wider the distance between the ankles.

The doctor’s exam for diagnosing knock knees may include:

• measurements of your child’s length and height
• measurements of her weight and body mass index (BMI)
• measurements taken of knee extensions and rotations
• assessment of leg-lengths and leg symmetry
• observation and assessment of her gait

If your child is within the normal age for knock knees, has a normal exam with a typical appearance and no functional problems, Children’s doctors don’t usually take x-rays, preferring to avoid unnecessary radiation. But if she’s older than the usual age range, or if her legs aren’t symmetrical, our doctors usually opt for standing x-rays.