In a randomized, prospective study, data were collected on 23 girls with Tu
rner's syndrome (TS) and an age- and sex-matched control group of 47 girls
in order to document foot problems and to establish their cause. History re
vealed that 6 (26%) girls with TS had problems with ingrowing toenails comp
ared with none of the control subjects. Compared with the control subjects,
girls with TS showed a significantly increased incidence of short, broad f
eet; hyperextension of the great toes at the interphalangeal joint; toe nai
l involution; inflammation of the periungual tissues; and intermittent lymp
hedema. These features in combination with excessive subtalar joint pronati
on predispose to an increased risk of ingrowing toenails. We conclude that
foot care problems are common in TS because of a number of predisposing fac
tors and that foot examination should be part of routine surveillance.