Rickets
a disease peculiar to infancy, chiefly characterized by changes in the texture, chemical composition, and outward form of the bony skeleton, and by altered functions of the other organs.
The chief external features are the legs bent outward, chest unduly projecting, head large and forehead projecting, spine often curved, joints large and prominent, general form stunted, etc. Rickets is chiefly a disease of large cities, and its development is favored by want of nourishing food, overcrowding, and neglect of sanitary and hygienic precautions generally.