Limping in a School-age Girl

Abstract

Children with a chief complaint of limping are commonly encountered in pediatric primary and urgent care. Although the etiology of limping is often from a musculoskeletal injury or overuse, a thorough history and physical examination are required to rule out less common conditions such as Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease, muscular dystrophy, or a brain tumor. This retrospective case report focuses on a 9-year-old girl who presented to a primary care office with right-sided limping. The parents were very concerned because the child had also developed weakness in her right hand. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed an astrocytoma in the left cerebral peduncle.