# Mary Cassatt: Impressionism, Tibial Torsion, Metatarsus Adductus, and Asymmetric Thigh Skin Folds

## TL;DR

This paper explores how Mary Cassatt's artwork reflects common pediatric orthopedic conditions observed in the 19th century.

## Contribution

The paper connects art and medicine by identifying pediatric orthopedic conditions in Cassatt's paintings.

## Key findings

- Cassatt's paintings depict children with tibial torsion and metatarsus adductus.
- Asymmetric thigh skin folds are also visible in her artwork.
- These observations align with the early scientific understanding of pediatric orthopedics.

## Abstract

Mary Cassatt was one of the three great female impressionists along with Berthe Morisot and Marie Bracquemond. Most of Cassatt's paintings focused on domestic scenes of mothers, infants, and children, almost exclusively female. Her paintings depicted children with common pediatric orthopaedic conditions like tibial torsion, metatarsus adductus, and asymmetric medial thigh skin folds. It was during this same time that clinical scientists were establishing the scientific foundations of our modern understanding of these pediatric orthopaedic conditions.