If you are diabetic, pay extra attention to your feet. Diabetes can impair your circulatory and nervous systems and create a host of problems with your feet. You may experience poor circulation or tingling and numbness from nerve damage, making injuries easy to overlook and hard to heal. A little TLC can make a big … Read more
Every fall, I see more patients with heel pain. Why the uptick in heel issues? Often, it’s related to wearing sandals without proper foot support during the summer. The most common heel condition that I treat is plantar fasciitis. It occurs when the tissue—or plantar fascia—that extends from the heel to the toes becomes inflamed. … Read more
A runner’s feet are more vulnerable to injury than any other part of the body. Whether running long distances or simply jogging, runners can improve their performance by keeping their feet in top condition and taking steps to avoid foot problems. Heel pain is a common complaint I hear from runners. Both faulty mechanics and … Read more
More than 27 million youth ages 6-17 participate in sports in our country, and I typically see three types of foot and ankle injuries in young athletes: injuries related to growth, trauma and overuse. One of the most common conditions I treat in pediatric patients is Sever’s disease, which causes heel pain in growing, physically … Read more
The patient called my office after collapsing during a hike while carrying a heavy pack. He’d hobbled back to his truck after the fall with the support of his hiking poles, and now his ankle was swollen and painful. He thought it was sprained. Should he schedule an appointment? Yes. One of the most common … Read more
Stepping barefoot on a small sliver of glass may only hurt a minute but don’t minimize a puncture wound. Puncture wounds are different than cuts. A puncture has a small entry hole caused by a pointed object while a cut is an open wound where the skin is torn. Puncture wounds require different treatment than … Read more
A painful big toe can be very distressing since we use our big toe whenever we walk, bend, climb or even stand. Big toe arthritis, a form of osteoarthritis or “wear and tear” arthritis, is one of the most common reasons I see patients experiencing pain and stiffness in their big toe. It affects about … Read more
Sprained ankles are one of the most frequent injuries I treat. But not all sprains are created equal. An ankle sprain is an injury to one or more of the ligaments—the band of tissues connecting the bones and joints—in the ankle. But the severity of the sprain depends on whether the ligament is stretched, partially … Read more
America’s fastest growing sport is pickleball. And as the popularity of this paddle sport has grown, so have pickleball injuries. Set on a court 44 feet long by 20 feet wide, the game demands quick movements and sudden changes in direction as players hit the wiffle-like ball over a net with a paddle. While pickleball … Read more
Bunions are one of the most common conditions I treat in my foot and ankle practice. While they can occur at any age, I see them most often in older adults and more frequently in women than men. A bunion is easy to recognize. It looks like a bony bump at the base of the … Read more