{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,12]],"date-time":"2026-10-12T16:11:34Z","timestamp":1791821494729,"version":"4.3.4"},"reference-count":58,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2021,1,23]],"date-time":"2021-01-23T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1611360000000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["IJERPH"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Introduction: Drop-out before treatment completion is a vexing problem for all clubfoot clinics. We and others have previously identified better engagement with parents as a crucial method of ameliorating incomplete clubfoot treatment, which increases deformity relapse. Materials and methods: The novel use of community facilitators enabled an audit of over 300 families who had dropped-out from a child\u2019s clubfoot treatment. A questionnaire standardized the parent interviews. Parents were encouraged to present for clinical review of their child\u2019s clubfeet. Results: When treatment was discontinued for six months, 309 families were audited. A social profile of families was developed, showing that most lived in tin houses with one working family member, indicating low affluence. Family issues, brace difficulty, travel distances, and insufficient understanding of ongoing bracing and follow-up were the main reasons for discontinuing treatment. Overt deformity relapse was found in 9% of children, while half of the children recommenced brace use after review. Conclusions: Identifying families at risk of dropping out from clubfoot care enables support to be instigated. Our findings encourage clinicians to empathize with parents of children with clubfoot deformity. The parent load indicator, in parallel with the initial clubfoot severity assessment, may help clinicians to better appreciate the demand that treatment will place on parents, the associated risk of drop-out, and the opportunity to enlist support.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph18030993","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2021,1,25]],"date-time":"2021-01-25T02:07:00Z","timestamp":1611540420000},"page":"993","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":20,"title":["A Community Audit of 300 \u201cDrop-Out\u201d Instances in Children Undergoing Ponseti Clubfoot Care in Bangladesh\u2014What Do the Parents Say?"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"18","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5527-1161","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Angela Margaret","family":"Evans","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"FFPM RCPS(Glasg), Discipline of Podiatry, School of Science, Health and Engineering, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Melbourne 3083, Australia"},{"name":"Walk for Life\u2014Clubfoot Project, Dhaka 1213, Bangladesh"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mamun","family":"Chowdhury","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Walk for Life\u2014Clubfoot Project, Dhaka 1213, Bangladesh"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Sharif","family":"Khan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Walk for Life\u2014Clubfoot Project, Dhaka 1213, Bangladesh"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,1,23]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e000852","DOI":"10.1136\/bmjgh-2018-000852","article-title":"Clubfoot treatment in 2015: A global perspective","volume":"3","author":"Owen","year":"2018","journal-title":"BMJ Glob. 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