Study: Common foot problems hereditary

ATLANTA, Nov. 12 (UPI) -- Two common foot problems, long suspected of being genetic, have been confirmed as conditions people can inherit, a U.S. study has found.

Both often painful conditions can cause problems with mobility, HealthDay reported.

A bunion deformity in which the big toe angles toward the smaller toes, known as hallux valgus, and high-arched feet that don't flatten when bearing weight, known as pes cavus, both show a tendency to be inherited, researchers reported at the annual scientific meeting of the American College of Rheumatology in Atlanta.

Among more than 2,000 people studied between 2002 and 2005, researchers found the bunion deformity was hereditary in about 39 percent of women and 38 percent of men, and the high-arch disorder was inherited in 68 percent of women and 20 percent of men.

The knowledge of heritability is an important diagnostic finding because "effective interventions are available and, as with most public health interventions, are most effective in the early stages," lead investigator Marian T. Hannan, an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, said.