Blog List

Aging Feet

Overview

By the time we reach 65, most of us will have walked more than 75,000 miles (3 times around the equator), and bore several million tons of weight on our feet. Over time, this abuse takes its toll on our feet and alters the structure of the feet. The most common changes that occur in the feet are listed below.

  • Increase in foot size and width.

  • The bottoms of the feet lose the fatty pads that cushion the feet (especially the balls of the feet), and the skin becomes thinner.

  • Flattening of the arch.

  • Ligaments And Tendons Become Looser And Weaker

  • Dry, Flaky Skin

  • Thick and discolored toenails.

  • Crooked toes and feet.


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Dry Skin & Cracked Heels

Description

Dry skin on any part of the body can be annoying and can cause flaking and cracking of the skin, redness due to scratching, and unsightly patches of thick/hard skin. However, when dry skin occurs on the feet, the symptoms of discomfort are magnified due to shoe wear, the stretching of the skin on the feet each time we step down, and by certain synthetic materials in the socks and shoes that dry the skin out even more. Because of the confining nature of the shoes we wear and the lack of fresh air that hits the skin of the feet due to our socks and shoes, dry feet need specialized care in order to prevent pain.

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Flat Feet

The normal arch functions as a shock absorber for our entire body. Each time we step down, we place up to 5 times our body weight on the foot, depending on whether we are walking, running, or jumping. If there were no shock absorber in the foot, the force of each step would eventually fracture or dislocate the bones of the foot, leg, and lower back. When the arch is flat (a flat foot), it cannot function properly. If left untreated, this will lead to a completely collapsed foot which cannot function as a shock absorber at all; and, this in turn can cause constant pain in the foot, and eventually the knee, hip, and lower back.

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Supination

Description

Supination is a turning inward of the foot at the ankle, so that one has a tendency to walk on the outer border of the foot.

Supination

Chief Diagnostic Sign: You can test for supination by looking at the leg and foot from the back. Normally you can see the Achilles tendon run straight down the leg into the heel. If the foot is supinated, the tendon will run straight down the leg, but when it lies on the heel it will twist inward. This makes the outer ankle bone appear more prominent than the inner ankle bone.

Because supination is a twisting of the foot, all of the muscles and tendons that run from the leg and ankle into the foot will be twisted. If left untreated, supination may be the cause of heel spurs, plantar fasciitis, hallux limitus and rigidus, ball of foot pain (metatarsalgia), shin splints, high and painful arches, and eventually knee, hip, and lower back pain. Supination can also predispose to ankle sprains due to the excess stress applied to the lateral ankle tendons and ligaments.


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Pronation

Description

Pronation is a turning outward of the foot at the ankle, so that one has a tendency to walk on the inner border of the foot. (Pronation is the opposite of supination). When a foot and ankle pronates to a great degree, we call it over-pronation. During the normal gait cycle, we all pronate and then rapidly recover. It is over-pronation that patients are concerned with. This is a static deformity associated with flat feet and sometimes with foot and arch pain.

Chief Diagnostic Sign: You can test for pronation by looking at the leg and foot from the back. Normally you can see the Achilles Tendon run straight down the leg into the heel. If the foot is pronated, the tendon will run straight down the leg, but when it lies on the heel it will twist outward. This makes the inner ankle bone much more prominent than the outer ankle bone.

Because pronation is a twisting of the foot, all of the muscles and tendons that run from the leg and ankle into the foot will be twisted. If left untreated, pronation may be the cause of heel spurs, plantar fasciitis, frequent ankle sprains, shin splints, weak and painful arches, and eventually knee, hip, and lower back pain.


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Plantar Fasciitis

Overview

Heel pain affects over 2 million Americans each year and can be responsible for mild discomfort or even debilitating pain.

The two most common causes of pain in the bottom of the heel, the arch, or both the heel and the arch, are plantar fasciitis and heel spurs.

Plantar fasciitis is an inflammation of the plantar fascia. The plantar fascia is a thick ligamentous/fibrous band on the bottom of the foot that is attached to the heel, and runs forward to insert into the ball of the foot. Plantar fasciitis is a painful inflammation of this band, which usually occurs at its attachment to the heel; however, the inflammation and pain of plantar fasciitis can occur anywhere on the plantar fascia.

A Heel Spur is a piece of calcium or bone that sticks out from the bottom of the heel bone, and lies within the fibers of the plantar fascia. When walking, the spur may apply undue pressure to the plantar fascia. This produces inflammation and pain in the heel, which at times may radiate into the arch


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Sever’s Disease (Children’s Heel Pain)

Description

When recurring heel pain occurs in children, it is usually due to Sever’s Disease, while adult heel pain is usually due to heel spurs, plantar fasciitis, or retrocalcaneal bursitis (Haglund’s Deformity).

Definitions:

  1. Calcaneus is the anatomical name of the heel bone.

  2. Sever’s Disease or Calcaneal Apophysitis is an inflammation of the growth plate located at the posterior aspect (back) of the heel.

Sever’s Disease


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Shin Splints

Description

Shin splints is a term used to describe several conditions due to inflammation of the muscle and tendon attachments to the lower leg bone (tibia). Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome is also used to describe shin splints. The term shin splints should not be used to describe specific tenderness on one area of the bone such as a possible stress fracture. Shin splints are characterized by pain and tenderness along the inner aspect of the lower 2/3 of the tibia. The posterior tibialis and soleus muscles attach to the tibia in this area. The function of these muscles is to support the arch of the foot and to help the calf muscles direct the foot. Shin splints are usually due to repetitive use of these muscles, resulting in an inflammation at their attachment sites on the bone.

This term usually applies to pain in the front of the leg, occurring anywhere between the ankle and the knee. However, it can also refer to pain in the inner side of the lower leg. Walking, running, or jumping usually initiates the pain in both of these areas. In extreme cases one can have pain in these areas while just standing still.


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Short Leg Syndrome

Description

When one leg is shorter then the other, it is medically referred to as Limb Length Discrepancy or Short Leg Syndrome. Having a shorter leg does indeed produce a variety of bodily symptoms, and the term “syndrome” is very accurate. Syndrome implies a multitude of symptoms.


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Sprained Ankle

Description

Sprained ankles may occur frequently and become a serious medical problem, destabilizing your every step and putting you in jeopardy of taking a disastrous fall. Ankle sprains can be divided into groups of mild, moderate, or severe. These are often graded as Grade 1, which is a mild sprain, Grade 2 that is more severe and may be associated with longer recovery and may involve a partial tear of ligaments or tendon. Grade 3 often refers to a complete tear of the ligaments and tendon and requires longer periods of care and in severe cases may require surgical treatment.


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