He is the best doctor hands down. We have a plan for my son's care and I'm completely comfortable with him and trust him with every aspect of care for my son and even my family. I would never go to another foot doctor when the best is right here in town. You ROCK Dr. V!

• Clubfoot – One of the most common birth defects, this is present at your child’s birth. One or both feet appear to curve in, creating a “clubbed” look. With careful and highly precise treatment through your child’s infancy, the feet can be properly aligned, allowing your child to walk normally and have better function. Our team specializes in treating this particular condition.
• Cavus foot – This is an issue with excessively high arches. Usually, it develops slowly over the first decade of life, causing pain and increasing your child’s risk for calluses and injuries like ankle sprains. This condition may be connected to nerve or muscular issues.
• Tarsal coalition – This kind of rigid flatfoot is the result of two or more tarsal bones in the middle or back of the foot fusing together. Typically pain from the problem doesn’t develop until your child is older, as the “bridge” between the bones hardens.
• Polydactyly – Occasionally children are born with extra toes. It could be nothing more than a little nub, or a more fully formed extra digit.
• Syndactyly – Sometimes children are born with “webbed” toes. This could be nothing more than excess skin between the digits, or could involve extra bone, nerves, and blood vessels as well.
• Polysyndactyly – Children can be born with both an extra digit and webbing between their toes. Depending on how developed these extra features are, the more advanced the surgery will be to correct it.
• Juvenile bunion – Just like in adults, the first metatarsal and the big toe can slide out of alignment, creating a bump on the side of the joint where the two meet. This can make wearing shoes and sometimes even being active very uncomfortable for your child.
• Brachymetatarsia – Very rarely, one of the metatarsal bones will not grow correctly and be much shorter than the others at birth. This can cause painful biomechanical issues when walking.
• Intoeing and Out-toeing – Sometimes children’s toes appear to point inward or outward when they walk. This is a gait abnormality that children normally outgrow, but it is something worth monitoring in case it becomes painful or is connected to a more serious condition.
• Metadducus – Also called metatarsus adductus, your child is born with one or both feet appearing to curve so the toes point inward toward each other. With early casting and stretching, the toes can be entirely straightened out by the time your child begins to walk.
• Vertical talus – Occasionally the ankle (talus) bone does not develop correctly, resulting in a foot that points upward at birth. In some cases, stretching and casting can help improve this problem, but the bone’s position may need to be surgically corrected after serial casting.

Foot and ankle problems in children often go unnoticed. Signs and symptoms can be subtle, but sometimes they can’t explain what’s wrong. It’s important to protect growing feet and have problems checked out early. 

5 Warning Signs Parents Should Watch for in Their Kids

1. Keeping up with their peers: If your child lags behind in sports or backyard play, it may be due to tired legs or feet. Fatigue is common when children have flat feet.
2. Withdrawn from favorite activities: If they are reluctant to participate, it may be due to heel pain – a problem often seen in children between the ages of 8 and 14. Repetitive stress from sports may cause muscle strain and inflammation of the growth plate, a weak area at the back of a child’s heel.
3. Hiding their feet: Children may feel pain or notice a change in the appearance of their feet or nails but don’t tell their parents because they fear a trip to the doctor’s office. Foot and ankle surgeons encourage parents to make a habit of inspecting their child’s feet starting at a young age. Look for any changes such as calluses, growths, skin discoloration or redness and swelling around the toenails.
4. You child often trips & falls: Repeated clumsiness may be a sign of in-toeing, balance problems or a neuromuscular condition.
5. Complaining of pain: It is never normal for a child to have foot pain. Injuries may seem minor, but if pain or swelling last more than a few days, have your child’s foot examined.