Growing pains in children are common, and the term is often inappropriately used as diagnosis for any unexplained musculoskeletal leg pain in children. The true syndrome of growing pains that the diagnosis should be reserved for:

• it usually peaks around ages 4 to 5, but can occur up to age 12.
• it generally occurs just behind the knee at night and is usually relieved by rubbing.
• growing pains do not occur during the day.
• growing pains occur in the muscle and not the joints.

The cause of pain is not known or is poorly understood, but is unlikely to be solely related to ‘growth’. The differential diagnosis of growing pains is important as it can include bone tumours and problems of the hip that refer pain to the knee area. While these problems are not very common, they do need to be ruled out.

Many concerned parents have asked about growing pains in children at the Foot Health Forum and Podiatry Arena has several threads on growing pains in children.