Patient's question:
My father has X-legs, and I do too. Will this be inherited? What are the most effective methods to correct it?Doctor's answer:
Osteomalacia, commonly known as rickets, is a common cause of skeletal and joint deformities, with multiple clinical types. The most common form is vitamin D deficiency rickets, which typically occurs in children. When it occurs in adolescents aged 16-17, it is referred to as late-onset rickets, and in adults, it is known as osteomalacia. This condition is primarily caused by insufficient vitamin D in the diet or inadequate exposure to sunlight, which impairs calcium and phosphorus absorption. Vitamin D plays a role in regulating the balance of calcium and phosphorus metabolism in the body. When vitamin D is deficient, intestinal calcium and phosphorus absorption decreases, and renal tubular reabsorption of phosphorus also declines, preventing normal bone formation. As a result, newly formed osteoid tissue fails to properly ossify, gradually replacing existing bone tissue with insufficiently ossified osteoid tissue. Insufficient calcification of osteoid tissue in the growth plates leads to deformities in weight-bearing lower limbs, with varus deformity being more common than valgus deformity. Late-onset rickets often causes knee varus or valgus deformities during puberty, particularly in young women. The exact etiology or risk factors for this condition remain unclear. It may be related to rapid development, as puberty represents the body's second growth spurt. If a negative calcium metabolic balance occurs during this period, it can lead to osteoporosis or even softening, resulting in knee varus or valgus deformities.Advice: The incidence of this condition is approximately 1:9 in males and females. It may be related to hormonal imbalances during the initial menstrual period in females. Excessive growth hormone can stimulate overly rapid metabolic growth, but immature collagen tissue is more susceptible to damage, thereby affecting normal bone formation. Girls experience their growth spurt between the ages of 10-13, during which skeletal development accelerates, and gonads gradually mature. The peak incidence, peak height growth, and average age of menarche align, indicating a close relationship between late-onset rickets and hormonal metabolic disorders.