Ponseti treatment of clubfoot: exploring the experience of the parents
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Using Ponseti boots and bar treatment for the correction of clubfoot: exploring the experience of the parents through qualitative enquiry
IRAS ID
349537
Contact name
Lindsey Williams
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust,
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 10 months, 0 days
Research summary
Background: Approximately 650 babies are diagnosed with clubfoot every year in the UK. Untreated, clubfoot prevents children from walking normally and causes long-term pain. The Ponseti method is the gold standard treatment for clubfoot. A series of casts are applied to the infant’s foot to improve its position, possible surgery to lengthen the Achilles tendon, and a device consisting of boots attached to a rigid bar to maintain the corrected foot position are used. This device can cause skin sores because it is worn for long periods and limits movement. If the device is not worn the foot deformity can relapse and the child will be left with pain and disability. As the treatment is completed by the age of 5 it is the parents/carers of children who bear the full responsibility for the treatment.
Aims: To explore the experience of parents/carers with a child being treated by the Ponseti method
Methodology: A Qualitative enquiry approach using semi-structured interviews and reflexive thematic analysis
Outputs: Key themes in the experience of parents/carers of children being treated using the Ponseti method
Patient benefit: To provide greater insight to the clinicians supporting parents/carers enabling them to work better in partnership to reduce non-adherence
REC name
Wales REC 7
REC reference
25/WA/0088
Date of REC Opinion
14 Mar 2025
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion