Dealing with Stress Fractures of the Foot and Ankle
Stress fractures in the foot and ankle happen when muscles become weak due to too much or too little use. Stress fractures cause the muscles to stop cushioning the foot and ankles from the impact of hitting the ground. Since there is nothing to protect the bones of the foot, they absorb the full impact of each step you take. This additional stress causes little cracks, or stress fractures, to form in the bones that are being pressured.
Stress fractures are common in highly active people, especially athletes. Basketball, tennis or and gymnastics are activities where stress fractures occur more frequently. However, anyone can receive a stress fracture. Normally sedentary individuals who suddenly begin an intensive high impact work out may incur a stress fracture. This is because their muscles are not resistant enough to handle and cushion the intensity of the activity. Osteoporosis patients may also suffer stress fractures because the disease weakens the victim’s bones, making it easier for them to wear and tear.
Pain from stress fractures occurs in the site area of the fracture. It may be either constant or intermittent, causing sharp or dull pain accompanied by swelling and/or tenderness. Engagement in any kind of high impact activity will only exacerbate the pain. In fact, it can even cause a full fracture, especially when the area is not fully healed. Full fractures are much more serious, and can prevent you from using your foot at all.
Treatment varies depending on the patient and the degree of his or her injury. The most important treatment is to rest the injured foot. Some fractures may heal quicker with brief rest, while others need a longer rest period and utilizing crutches. In some cases surgery is required to install support pins around the fracture to aid healing.
To prevent stress fractures, be sure to get plenty of Calcium and Vitamin-D in your diet. This helps keep your bones strong and fortifies their resistance. If you begin a new regimen that involves high impact activity, set incremental goals on a weekly basis so you can build up the proper muscular strength. For example, if you wish to walk every day, you could ride a bike on some of those days to take stress off your feet. Also, make sure to wear supportive shoes that provide adequate protection.
If you experience any symptoms of stress fractures, you should stop exercising and rest. If these symptoms do not go relieve themselves, consult with an orthopedic specialist. Taking these measures can help prevent stress fractures to your foot and ankle, and allow you to continue the activities you enjoy.
Toenail Fungus
Toenail fungus is a frustrating and embarrassing problem for many people. It can be persistent and hard to get rid of. Thankfully, there are a number of options for treatment available.
The most effective treatment for toenail fungus is Lamisil. However, any anti-fungal treatment sold to get rid of athlete's foot can also be used. In the ingredients list on products sold to kill fungal growth on the body, look for the ingredient terbinafine. Terbinafine is a chemical product that kills fungal growths. Using a product with terbinafine in it will essentially damage the cell membrane of the fungus organism. However, don't expect immediate results. You will need to apply the medication regularly, and make sure to keep washing the affected area and drying it thoroughly. The fungus needs moisture, air and your skin to live.
Taking other precautions can also help with fungus. Use a powder such as talcum powder in the shoes to absorb sweat and moisture. It is also important to wear sandals or loose-fitting, open-toed shoes which will improve air-flow around the feet, keeping the feet dry. These kinds of shoes will also expose your feet to light, which is not favorable to fungus growth. Wearing socks that wick moisture and dry quickly will also help control fungus.
Although Lamisil and other medications containing terbinafine have been proven effective, they also cause a number of side effects which may be undesirable. If you decide that this kind of medication is not for you, there are a number of natural remedies to try. Applying alcohol, tea tree oil, hydrogen peroxide, or Vicks VapoRub to the nail regularly may solve the problem.
Your podiatrist might also recommend soaking your toenails in a gentle bleach solution. Anecdotal evidence suggests that vinegar and Listerine may also be effective when used as a soaking solution. These are simple treatments, but ones that require patience and consistency. There are also topical products available from your pharmacy which is manufactured especially for toenail fungus.
There are more immediate treatments for toenail fungus available using laser surgery. If you are looking for an immediate and quick removal of the toenail fungus, you will need to find a laser surgeon who can cut the growth out of your toenail. Don't try to cut the toenail fungus out using toenail scissors or other kinds of scissors. Once you get rid of your fungus infection, you will need to throw out your old shoes to avoid reinfection.
The Importance of Proper Foot Support
Feet are the foundation of the body, and just like the foundation of any structure, they must be stable and balanced in order to support the all of the body's weight. If they are not, they could cause many problems.
Bad foot support can cause pain or discomfort in the lower back, hips, knees, neck, and shoulder. It can lead to much less obvious problems as well, like stomach aches and headaches. Issues with the feet can lead to emotional stress and physiological changes in the body, including fatigue, blood sugar problems, and adrenal stress. In order to avoid these issues, you must be sure to wear shoes that provide proper foot support.
Of all the different parts of the foot, the arch is the one that needs the most support. This vital structure handles most of the pressure exerted during movement--for each mile someone walks, the arch bears between 200,000 and 300,000 pounds of stress. Arch height varies greatly from one person to another, and changes as a person ages. Proper support can prevent many musculoskeletal problems that may cause inactivity or even disability.
When searching for footwear, one must remember to buy shoes that fit well and that properly support the feet. Otherwise, you could suffer from a slew of foot-related problems. If, for example, you buy shoes that are too tight, you could hinder the support mechanism in the foot that keeps the body standing upright. If this mechanism is not working correctly, you will soon begin to slouch when standing. This quickly causes discomfort throughout the entire body, especially the back, and if it is not corrected it may cause permanent posture issues and bone deformation.
When shopping for shoes, only buy those that provide good heel and arch support. Both the heel and arch areas need to be firm, but still flexible enough for walking. Also make sure the shoes you intend to buy are the proper length and width for your feet. Your feet and toes should not feel squished or cramped in the shoe, or (if it is an open-toed shoe) be hanging over its sides. Additionally, if you are looking for a laced shoe, be sure to buy one that has many eyelets. Laces help the shoes form to the feet, and having many eyelets allows the laces to better conform to your foot. Also make sure that the laces are tied correctly, as laces that are not pulled tightly and tied do not provide proper support.
Good foot health is vital to overall body health. If you do not care for your feet properly, you could suffer many short and long-term problems that will negatively affect your entire body. Wearing shoes that provide good foot support is an easy way to avoid these problems, and live comfortably.
Arthritic Foot Care
In our lifetimes we walk 75,000 miles, putting a great deal of stress on the 26 bones and 30 joints in our feet. As we age, our feet lose flexibility and elasticity. Our shock absorbers weaken, and if you add arthritis to that combination, joints become inflamed and distorted. Arthritic foot care becomes imperative at this point.
Start taking better care of your feet by buying better fitting shoes. Hammertoes, neuroma, and bunions form when our shoes fit poorly. Buy shoes with a lower heel and with more room in the shoe. Rheumatoid arthritis will cause you to lose your arch. Buying shoes with arch support will help, as will buying shoes that contour to your foot.
Leave a fingers width between your foot and the shoe. If your finger cannot fit inside your shoe when it is on your foot, it is too tight. Buy rubber soled shoes. The cushioning of the rubber absorbs shock and the flexibility of the rubber helps the ball of the foot, where you push off from as you walk. Look for square or rounded toed shoes giving your toes lots of room to move.
Exercise will also help. Stretching the Achilles tendon, the cord at the back of the heel, will prevent further pain and injury. This will also increase your foots mobility. Lack of mobility will cause significant stress and pain. Massages will also alleviate some pain. Knead the ball of your foot and your toes from top to bottom.
To stretch your Achilles tendon, lean against a wall, with palms flat on the wall. Place one foot forward and one foot back with the heel flat on the floor, then lean forward. Feel the pull in the Achilles tendon and calf. Hold for five seconds and repeat three times. The big toe stretch is another exercise that may alleviate stiffness. Place one thick rubber band around your big toes. Pull the toes toward the other toes on the foot. Hold for five seconds and repeat ten times. Another exercise to try is the toe pull. Place a thick rubber band around the toes of each foot. Spread your toes for five seconds and repeat ten times.
Pain can be alleviated with non-steroid, anti-inflammatory drugs, heat, and ultrasounds. Topical medications with Capsaicin may also help. Thus far, there is no remedy for pain that is one hundred percent effective. Buying shoes that give your feet plenty room with low rubber heels and soles will help. If needed, use heat and anti-inflammatory drugs, and exercise your tendons and toes. Lastly, arthritic foot care should incorporate massages to help your feet with circulation and to relieve the stress locked up in your feet.
Foot Surgery
If noninvasive or less invasive procedures have failed you when it comes to problems with your feet, you may need to start thinking about getting foot surgery. There are many reasons why a person may need surgery on their feet, which include but are not limited to, problems with arthritis that have caused severe bone issues within your feet, deformities of the foot such as bone spurs and bunions, congenital malformations such as club foot and flat feet, and reconstruction to attend to injuries caused by accidents. Anyone of any age, race, or gender can undergo foot surgery if they feel the need to correct these problems and there are no limiting factors keeping people from getting their feet properly treated.
Depending on what needs to be done, there are many different types of surgeries to correct any issues you might have. For example, a bunionectomy is a procedure that will eliminate any growths on your feet, such as bunions, and have them removed via the surgery. If nerve pain and damage is what you are suffering from, then you may need to undergo procedures that will target the tissues that surround the painful nerve and potentially have them removed. If your bones need to be fused together or realigned, then surgical fusion of your feet is another option you might consider.
As mentioned before, many times when these issues are first discovered, other noninvasive or less invasive procedures are carrier out first before any surgery takes place. However, if all else fails, then surgery is the best option for you.
There are some obvious benefits to having surgery done on your feet. The first being that you will now be relieved of any pain in the foot or surrounding area, which means you can get back to doing activities you previously were unable to do. The second is that once you have completed your surgery, the problem will more often than not be gone forever, eliminating any recurring issues or pain.
Foot surgery techniques continue to advance yearly as better and more technologies become available for you. For example, endoscopic surgery is just one of the many advancements that have been made in the field of podiatric surgery. Many procedures are now able to take a less invasive route by using very small incisions and smaller, more refined instruments. On top of this, recovery time for surgeries has been significantly shortened leading to an overall positive advancement for all podiatric surgeries.
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