Determining Reasons Affecting the Late Treatment of Congenital Talipes Equinovarus: A Qualitative Study

BACKGROUND: Neglected congenital talipes equinovarus (CTEV) is a serious problem commonly found in developing countries. This deformity has fatal impacts, including disabilities and educational limitations. Moreover, cases of neglected CTEV are still frequent in Indonesia as one of the developing countries. Thus, this study aims to investigate the reasons behind the late treatment of CTEV.

METHODS: This is a qualitative study conducted throughout September 2019. The subjects are six parents of patients with neglected CTEV who are currently being treated in our hospital. The study was conducted by performing an in-depth interview with the patient’s parents to analyze why they delay checking their child to an orthopaedic surgeon. The results were then grouped into themes.

RESULTS: The reasons for the delay were multifactorial. Four subjects had more than one reason why they delayed checking their child to an orthopaedic surgeon. The reason for the delay were socioeconomic factors (3 subjects), medical-related problems (3 subjects), intentionally delayed or refused to seek medical care (2 subjects), and misinformation from the previous physician (3 subjects).

CONCLUSIONS: The reasons for the late treatment of CTEV were socioeconomic factors, medical-related problems, intentional factors, and misinformation.