When patients consult for repetitive lower back or neck pain that have no obvious cause, we check for a variety of causes including scoliosis and leg length discrepancies LLD. Ruling out scoliosis, and if one leg is short, determining the cause of this problem is vital to resolving it.
A short leg can be anatomical. That means that one leg is actually shorter than the other. How does this happen? There are many potential reasons, but a major one is trauma. For instance, if as a child you injured or fractured your femur (upper leg bone) in the area of the growth plate during a developmental growth spurt, for a period of several months the growth of the injured femur would be slower relative to the other unaffected leg. At the end of the growth cycle there would be a difference in leg lengths due to this injury. That is anatomical. The solution in many cases is to get orthotics in the shoes that compensate for this difference rebalancing the posture.
Determining The Cause Of A Short Leg
Taking a proper history to determine if there was any significant trauma is useful. A physical exam including biomechanical testing will also provide insight as to the nature of the problem. Sometimes it is clear, from the above, that orthotics are indicated and other times, a course of treatment is necessary to resolve the LLD.
Resolving Or Managing The Problem?
Most ‘Physiological’ short leg discrepancies can be resolved by Osteopathic treatment. Many ‘Anatomical’ short leg discrepancies can be resolved with corrective orthotics. However, certain conditions, such as scoliosis, can be mitigated by periotic treatment reducing the severity and frequency of pain and restoring the quality of life.
By: Eddy Basch D.O.