Occurrence of hypermobility of joints and its link with flatfoot in pre-school children in Latvia

The work surveyed hypermobility of joints in children and its effects on the level of longitudinal arch of the foot. Children aged 3-7 and attending nursery schools in different locations of Latvia were examined. Generalised hypermobility amounting to 47.2-65.2% of children depending on age was frequently observed. With age, hypermobility was less frequent, although mobility of some joints of the foot practically did not change, but hypermobility of elbow joints was surprisingly more frequent at the age of seven than at three years. The level of the longitudinal arch increased with child age. There was no significant relationship between general hypermobility and the level of the longitudinal arch of foot.