Three-year-old Katherine can keep up with other kids now, but that wasn’t always the case…
When Alana noticed her daughter was limping at the playground, she didn’t know what to think – especially when the limp didn’t go away. She decided to bring her to a doctor to be examined. After weeks of testing at multiple hospitals, Katherine was diagnosed with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). Her symptoms included painful swelling and inflammation in her left knee and ankle. With successful injection medication, Katherine’s symptoms were treated, the pain and swelling dissipated and she entered remission. However, her limp did not go away.
Walking, running and climbing are motor skills that can be impacted by JIA. When a toddler is learning these skills but develops arthritis pain, they can tend to use their ‘good’ leg or foot, even after they no longer have symptoms. This can result in things like a limp or a turned-out foot. Kids with JIA miss key opportunities to develop fundamental movement skills and patterns learned in childhood can be difficult to unlearn meaning these habits can carry over into their adult life.
The good news is that it can be corrected, especially if treated early.
Maddie Fyfe, registered physiotherapist at McMaster Children’s Hospital says “With enough practice, it’s possible to completely correct ingrained walking habits if we intervene early enough.” That’s where their program Steppingstones comes in.
Maddie and Julie Herrington (also of McMasters Children’s Hospital) developed an intensive, play-based program to help children strengthen their affected foot and teach them proper walking habits. Cassie + Friends has supplied the program with a child-sized obstacle ‘course’ including a balance cushion, balance beams, an agility ladder and bean bag toys, among other items. While the child makes their way through the course, Fyfe coaches their foot positioning and encourages strengthening exercises. With games in between exercises, kids can have fun while building strength and their parents can learn physiotherapy techniques by watching.
Cassie + Friends has also funded the purchase of orthotics for children involved in the Steppingstones pilot program. With custom orthotics, this can help the foot immensely while attending the six sessions of the program. In addition, Cassie + Friends has supplied parking passes to help reduce financial barriers to parents whose children are attending the program.
Children deserve to run, dance, climb and play. Getting a diagnosis of juvenile arthritis doesn’t have to stop them. Cassie + Friends is dedicated to a pain-free future for kids with juvenile arthritis and other rheumatic diseases… one step(pingstone) at a time.
If you are wondering how fundamental movement skills are affected by JA, concerned about motor and movement impairments for your child, curious if physical activity is too risky for them, wondering about early detection, intervention, and parent support, or want to know more about the Steppingstones program, all of those questions and more will be answered during our LIVE webinar with our panel of experts including Maddie, Julie and Dr. Joyce Obeid.
The recording of the webinar is available on our resource page here: www.cassieandfriends.ca/movements
