Orthotics are an important tool for your feet, which correct many problems both structurally and mechanically. They are able to do this because they ultimately realign your feet to a more usual or "neutral" position. On a daily basis many people suffer from foot pain, flat feet, excessive pronation, bowlegs, knock knees, pigeon-toes, duck feet, and high-arched feet. Orthotics can help these issues by restoring balance and eliminating or reducing foot, back, and leg pain. They improve function and efficiency, and can make you feel like a new person while on your feet.

Orthotics are custom-made inserts that fit inside the shoe. They are developed from a mold made of your specific foot and made to fix your exact walking pattern or structural issue. We offer several styles, which can be worn comfortably in most types of shoes.

Foot and ankle pain will affect most Americans at some point in their life. In fact, a recent American Podiatric Medical Association poll discovered that half of all working Americans have missed at least one day of work due to a foot problem. When you consider how much time is spent on your feet, the stress put on them, and the complex nature of them, this should really be no surprise.

The human foot is a marvelously complicated and efficient machine. It is comprised of over 100 working parts, including as many as 28 bones working in conjunction with ligaments, tendons and muscles. These parts work to support and balance our entire body. In the course of normal walking our feet bear up to one and a half times our body weight per foot. This pressure is enormous, and with the average foot traveling 1,000 miles a year there are many foot and ankle injuries.

The feet act as shock absorbers for the entire body. In the course of a one-hour strenuous workout they will cushion nearly one million pounds of pressure. As a result, many people feel the pain of this stress, usually caused by foot imbalance. This pain shouldn't be ignored, as it is not a normal result of foot function.

Orthotics are one of the most common ways to treat the majority of foot problems. They come in many forms and functions depending on your foot problem or injury. The most common foot orthotics are arch supports, cushion insoles, and more specific orthotics such as cushions for the heel or ball of the foot.

Regardless of the type or model, the goal of these orthotic inserts is to help keep the feet in proper balance by offering support and aiding in shock absorption. They also help to improve the biomechanical function of the foot, as well as the other joints of the lower body including the knees, hips and lower back.

The importance of proper foot function cannot be over stressed. When the foot fails, not only is there increased strain, and ultimately pain to the joints in the foot, but also in the ankle, knee and hip. These imbalances can lead to many other painful conditions but spur from the feet.

To help take the stress off of your overworked feet and to help avoid painful knee and hip conditions you should speak to a podiatrist or visit an online store to inquire about orthotics and inserts. There are many podiatrist recommended orthotics in the form of arch supports, insole cushions, gel insoles, gel cushions, arthritic and diabetic insoles. They can tremendously help your walking pattern, foot pain, or structural issues. Don't make your feet suffer any longer. Start protecting them so they can continue to serve you well for many years to come.

Ingrown toenails are one of the most common and painful things that can happen to your foot. These toenails usually occur on the side of your toe where your nail ends. This will occur when a sharp edge of the nail digs into the skin. This then creates a pocket of drainage making the toe swell and become very painful. Often times this slice in the toe can become infected around the skin, which is called paronychia.

This can happen for a number of reasons. Shoes that don't fit properly are most commonly the cause ingrown toenails. This includes shoes that are too tight therefore not giving the nail enough room to grow. The added pressure on the nail causes it to grow abnormally. Women who wear high heels often have this problem because of the shift of weight towards the toes.

Other causes of ingrown toenails are due to cutting the nails improperly. Nails should be cut straight across, not rounded. If a nail is rounded it is more apt to grow improperly into the surrounding skin. If you receive pedicures often make sure that your nails are being cut properly every time. Injury to the nails can also turn into an ingrown due to the shift in pressure on the nail. Fungal nails, which often makes nails thicker is another cause of ingrowns.

If you start to experience pain on the nail it is important to seek help from a podiatrist. Signs that you may have an ingrown toenail is if the side of your toe is painful, red, and swollen. Often times a podiatrist will look at your nail to make sure that the pain you are feeling is due to an ingrown nail.

Usually a podiatrist will start to remove the infection by removing the ingrown part of the toenail. Anesthesia is used during this procedure. If the nail or surrounding skin was infected an antibiotic may sometimes be prescribed and the patient will be asked to soak the toe. After the infection is completely healed a podiatrist may recommend removing the portion of the ingrown nail all the way down to the root. This prevents the nail from growing in the same way that it previously did.

To prevent the reoccurrence of an ingrown toenail it is extremely important to wear shoes that fit properly. Podiatrists have many shoes to recommend that will give your toenails the maximum amount of room to prevent another infection. It's also important to cut your nails properly: Straight, not curved at the edges. If you follow these rules it will greatly decrease your risk of developing an ingrown toenail.

It's incredibly important to deal with foot and ankle pain at a young age. Your feet are what carry you for your whole life. It's important to build a strong foundation for your body. If you don't have that strong foundation you may develop knee, hip, back, and shoulder pain, just from problems in your feet.

In a young child's feet the bones are soft and more apt to develop deformities with abnormal pressure. This includes wearing shoes that are too tight, which may halt development. In the first year of life a child's foot develops to almost half the size of an adult's foot. This first year is critical to their development.
While a child is growing it is very important to change shoes and socks sizes every few months. This gives their feet the room to grow and develop that they need. Shoes should also be flexible and comfortable for the child. You should be aware of your child's walking pattern in order to catch any underlying defect or condition. We are able to treat foot and ankle conditions and address any concerns you may have.

Sports injuries are on the rise in children as more and more become actively involved. One of the most common sports injuries are ankle sprains. X-rays are often the best way to detect any fracture or break, which can be treated with a fiberglass cast. There are other treatment options for ankle sprains such as soft casts and pneumatic walking splints that help treat both ankle and foot problems. Soft casts can be used for fractures and are more comfortable than fiberglass casts. It allows more movement, but still provides support. A pneumatic walking splint immobilizes the foot and ankle, but still allows the patient to walk with the splint on. After patients are taken out of a boot or a splint, a light or structurally sturdy ankle brace is usually dispensed to them.
After a full recovery from an ankle sprain the ligaments are still weakened. Custom made and over the counter orthotics can help provide the support needed to the weak ankle. Our over the counter orthotics can be dispensed directly to the patient. These orthotics are low cost if they are not already covered by insurance. Physical therapy is also an important step in the recovery process so that your child can get back onto the field as soon as possible.

Heel and arch pain is a major condition treated in the podiatric world. Heel and arch pain are usually symptoms of an underlying issue. Heel pain is often felt by 8-14 year olds because their feet are still growing and developing. During the growth their heel bone is weak and any stress put on it can often cause this pain. Heel and arch pain can be treated with orthotics. If this pain is not treated during childhood years later on they will experience worse pain. Treatment with orthotics is often a way to keep children with heel and arch pain from seeing an orthopedist for these problems later in life.
Limb length discrepancy is often a problem experienced by young children. This problem is simply when one leg is longer than the other leg. The difference can be anywhere from 1 centimeter to more than 6 centimeters. The greater the difference the more the patient has to compensate in their walking technique, posture, etc. Leaving this untreated can lead to many problems including back, ankle, and hip problems. Orthotics can help to correct any walking and posture changes. A simple adjustment to an orthotic can help to easily treat any length discrepancy.

Another common issue experienced by many children is called knock-knees which is when your knees touch but your ankles are not touching. This becomes apparent from age 2-3 and gets progressively worse until age 4. This can develop when a child is learning to walk and is trying to achieve balance. Sometimes it only occurs in one knee. Leaving knock-knees untreated can result in difficulty running and walking. Knock-knee can be treated with braces.

Often night braces are used to correct the position of the knee.

In toe and out toe are 2 of the most common gait issues. This type of gait, or walking, causes abnormal stresses on the foot and ankle as well as hip, knee, and back. Many deformities in the foot such as flatfoot and a high arch foot can cause a weakening of musculature. There are multiple types of braces can help a patient walk better. Sometimes the muscle of the upper leg and torso are weakened by the foot deformity; certain types of physical therapy and muscular strengthening exercises need to be addressed.

Toe walkers don't land on their heels when walking; because of it certain muscles in the back of the foot, leg and ankle area become very tight and certain stretching exercises will help along with certain types of braces. The shoe a child wears is extremely important to the way they land on their foot and need to be evaluated.

There are many common concerns over the type of walking pattern, pains, etc that children experience during growth. It is important to have these problems evaluated by a podiatrist so that this problem does not turn into a long-term malady. It's important to keep a close watch on these issues because often time there is a quick fix.

Why Would Someone Run Barefoot?

One of the fastest growing trends within the running community is one that many people find odd and dangerous. This new fad is called "barefoot running" in which people do not wear shoes at all during a run or wear a new type of shoe called "barefoot running shoes". Barefoot running shoes definitely sounds like an oxymoron, however, these shoes are a shoe that includes the philosophy of barefoot running without the added danger of cutting your feet on a rock, piece of glass, etc.

Barefoot running started to grab headlines because of Olympic athletes and marathon runners winning medals and breaking world records without shoes on. Many people say that this is a great way to run because our feet were developed before the advent of shoes and sneakers. On the contrary our feet were also here before the beginning of paved roads, which exerts extra stress on a runner's feet.

Bare feet are not meant to endure the stress of running on concrete and asphalt. Many people who support this type of running do so because they feel that their feet have more room to move around, not confined into the shape of a shoe. They also state that they have increased blood flow to their feet, less ankle sprains, less ingrown nails, etc. These problems are often the result of improper shoe gear. Many people have shoes that do not provide nearly enough arch support, which results in injury. Ingrown nails and decreased blood flow are often attributed to wearing shoes that are too tight. To prevent these types of injuries it is important to wear a shoe that is fitted to your specific foot. Many specialized shoe stores and podiatrists can recommend a sneaker that is custom fitted to your specific foot type. Running barefoot can also be very dangerous. There is a great increase in injuries from stepping on glass, rocks, and other materials that can cut or get stuck in the foot.

Another reason many people are running barefoot is because they say that it corrects the way they run and walk. The proper way to run is to land on the middle of the foot and propel yourself forward. Many people land on the heel which can lead to problems further down the road for your hips, knees, ankles, and feet. Barefoot running is said to correct this because "it is too painful to run improperly barefoot". A much easier and painless way to correct the way you walk and run is with a shoe insert called an orthotic. Orthotics can be matched to your foot type as closely as possible and dispensed over the counter. They can also be custom molded to your feet to give your exact foot type the maximum amount of support and correction possible. Orthotics are a great way to fix your running and walking pattern without having to endure the pain of barefoot running.

There is a lot of debate and hype regarding this new fad. It's important to weigh the positive and negative results. The majority of the negative connotations that come with wearing running sneakers are due to shoes that don't give enough support or shoes that are worn improperly. Specialized shoe stores and podiatrists are able to help you find a shoe that will eliminate these problems and give you the support and comfort that is so important for a good healthy run.