Summary

Perthes disease represents a transient interruption of the blood supply to the femoral head followed by collapse and subsequent remodelling. The majority of cases present between the ages of 4 and 10 years. We report the case of a child who developed a painful right-sided limp some days after his second birthday. The limp was initially interpreted as a transient synovitis of the hip. However, when the limp persisted, further investigations revealed that he had Perthes disease.