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Clark, NJ 07066

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Foot Notes

Posts for tag: Orthotics

By Clark Podiatry Center
September 26, 2018
Category: arthritis

Your feet and ankles each have 33 joints that allow you to move about freely. Curling and pointing your toes, standing on your tip toes, as well as walking or running in different directions are all doable thanks to those joints. But a diagnosis of arthritis can change all that. Once arthritis sets in, your joints can become stiff and painful. You can have days of severe inflammation, where you can barely move around, even in your own home.

That’s why we’ve come up with some tips to make it easier to live with arthritis in the feet:

  • Physical therapy and Foot Exercises: It may seem counterintuitive to exercise the feet, but it’s actually very helpful to perform low-impact exercises. Especially for those with gouty arthritis, exercise can help prevent uric acid buildup, which can cause a painful gout attack. Flexibility and mobility exercises like stretching and swimming can reduce the risk of painful inflammation on tendons and ligaments in the joints.
  • Wear supportive shoes. A lot of cushioning can help reduce the impact on the joints. Additionally, you can use orthotic inserts to add padding to joints that are particularly painful (e.g. big toe joint or back of the heel).
  • Orthotics. During your podiatry assessment, Dr. Macy might recommend custom orthotics for your feet, depending on how arthritis is affecting you.
  • Reduce or eliminate high-impact activities. The more high-impact activities (e.g. basketball, football, running) that you participate in, the more likely you are to experience inflammation around your joints (which absorb that impact). This can worsen symptoms, so look to alternative exercises and activities to stay physically active.
  • Schedule in periods of rest. Sometimes, life seems to be about “go, go, go”. However, schedule in periods of rest so that your joints can recover in between periods of walking or standing to reduce the risk of arthritis flare-ups.
  • Make your home more comfortable. Use cushioned mats around the house, wherever you’ll be standing around. For examples, in front of sinks, the oven, and counters where you might prepare food.
  • Eat nutritiously and maintain a healthy weight. Anti-inflammatory foods are a must and the less weight that your joints have to support, the better for preventing inflammation.
  • Reduce stress. Stress tends to make inflammation worse in your body. Find ways to reduce stress, such as meditation and getting foot massages.

Take good care of your arthritic feet! If you’ve been experiencing joint pain in the feet, come in for an assessment! We can help you determine how you can best treat your condition. Make an appointment to see our board-certified podiatrist, Dr. Brandon Macy at Clark Podiatry Center. We are located in Clark, NJ and serve patients in all of Union County! We keep you walking!

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By Clark Podiatry Center
August 08, 2018
Category: Orthotics

Do you ever find yourself wanting your shoes to be more comfortable? Maybe if they had a little more padding on this part of the shoe, you would be able to wear them for a bit longer. If only there was more arch support, you wouldn’t suffer from chronic plantar fasciitis. Is there a way to find comfort without buying new shoes altogether?

orthotics

Yes! Orthotics to the rescue!

Sometimes, finding comfort and extra support can be as simple as adding over-the-counter orthotic inserts. If your shoes are in good condition, other than making your feet tired, you may just need some arch pads, ball of feet pads, or heel cups to stabilize your feet. Shoes like high heels, flats, and some sandals need some orthotic inserts to reduce foot pain for a long day of standing or walking.

For other issues, like foot deformities (e.g. bunions or hammertoes), you may need custom-made orthotics. They might be inserts or whole shoes that are custom-formed for your specific needs. For example, your feet may not fit into typical shoe shapes if you have a severe bunion deformity. The orthotic shoe can help prevent worsening symptoms and allow for foot comfort from chronic pain and other symptoms.

Additionally, some people may need temporary orthotic support when rehabilitating from an injury. Foot or ankle braces can ensure that bones and soft tissues heal properly. It can also support the ankle joints so they may continue to function while the healing tissues are gaining strength.  

Furthermore, children who might have developmental issues or injuries can also benefit from orthotics. Using orthotics can help correct problems like pigeon-toeing, overpronation, or Sever’s Disease.

There is a broad range of orthotics that can help with many different situations for your family’s feet and ankles. If you think that you or a family member can benefit from orthotics, make an appointment today at Clark Podiatry Center. Our board-certified podiatrist, Dr. Brandon Macy will assess your feet to find the best treatments or solutions for your feet. We are located in Clark, NJ and serve patients in all the surrounding Union County towns!

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By Clark Podiatry Center
May 23, 2018
Category: Shoes

You traded in your high heels for flats, because it’s probably the better decision. Or is it?

While it’s true that most high heels are not supportive enough for the feet and can cause ongoing foot problems, it’s not necessarily true that flats are the antidote. In most cases, flats are probably less problematic, but that depends on whether or not they have supportive features.

Because both high heels and flats are usually worn with fashion in mind, they tend to lack supportive features that are necessary to keep feet healthy and pain-free. High heels can cause pain in the balls of the feet and the toes, but flats can cause pain along the bottom of the feet. So if you have foot pain even when you thought you remedied the problems caused by high heels, it’s probably due to the flatness of flats.

Flats can be your arch nemesis if they lack the following supportive features:

●Arch support - Most flats have flat inner soles. This can cause excessive straining for the plantar fascia, which aggravates any problems that folks with fallen arches or flat feet might have, like plantar fasciitis.

●Supportive heel cups and solid heel contours - When heels are not supported with specific heel grooves, they may be prone to sliding around, which can result in blisters and calluses, or Achilles tendonitis as feet can under- or over-pronate.

●Cushioning in the soles - Most inner soles tend to have a very thin lining and lack cushioning. This can increase the impact felt by the feet, ankles, knees, hips, and back.

●Roomy toe boxes - Many flats tend to become narrow in the front and are tight around the feet because they do not have straps or laces to keep them secured on the feet. Tight toe boxes can cause problems like hammertoes or worsen pre-existing problems like bunions.

This doesn’t mean that you should never buy flats. Instead of swearing off all flats, you can find flats with built-in support. Alternatively, you can use over-the-counter orthotic inserts. However, if you need custom-made orthotics, we can help! Make an appointment to see our board-certified podiatrist, Dr. Brandon Macy at Clark Podiatry Center. He can assess your feet and give them the treatment or orthotic support they need. Come see him at our Clark, NJ office.

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By Clark Podiatry Center
April 25, 2018
Category: Laser therapy

Some of the worst villains in movie history use “lasers” in their plan to destroy the world. In the podiatry world, however, we use lasers for good, not for evil. When the terrible, horrible symptoms of pain and inflammation wreak havoc on your feet and ankles, you look to lasers for help.

Laser therapy is typically an option after conservative treatments prove to be unsuccessful. It uses a focused light beam to stimulate healing by encouraging cell metabolism. The treatment is easy and healing time is reduced. What would normally take months to properly heal now takes only a few treatments (about 10-12) of about 10 minutes per session.

For foot pain, a laser is commonly used to treat:

  • Plantar fasciitis – arch or heel pain due to strained plantar fascia ligaments; usually affects people with flat feet or high arches.
  • Achilles tendonitis – heel pain in the back of the heel bone (Achilles) due to a strained foot or ankle sprain; often due to over or under pronation.
  • Neuromas – numbness or pain due to thickened nerve tissue in a specific area; typically experienced if you wear shoes that put excessive force on a specific part of your feet, such as the balls of the feet.

If you’ve been suffering from foot pain, well why wouldn’t you want fast, easy, painless treatment?

But did you know that a laser can also be used to fight the battle against fungal toenails! While the fungal infection might not be causing terrible, horrible pain, they could be the cause of your ugly, brittle, discolored toenails. Unfortunately, you probably picked it up from a family member or from walking barefoot in the gym locker room.

If left untreated, the fungal infection can spread to the surrounding skin on the feet and cause a rash or scaly dry skin. It can spread from one part of the foot to the other because fungal toenails and Athlete’s foot are caused by the same fungus. Laser therapy can be used to treat the toenails so that new toenails do not grow back with a fungal infection!

So if you’ve got a persistent heel pain or fungal infection that won’t respond to conservative treatments, come see our board-certified podiatrist, Dr. Brandon Macy for an assessment. If laser therapy is right for you, we can get started on treatments right away. Using orthotics in conjunction with laser therapy might be a treatment option too! Make an appointment today to have your feet treated with care. We are located in Clark, NJ and serve patients in all of Union County! We keep you walking!

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By Clark Podiatry Center
March 28, 2018
Category: Running

If you’re an experienced runner or jog on a daily basis, you know that the worst situation is when you’ve got chronic foot pain or an ankle injury. Not only do you feel pain, you might also have to stop your running routine completely to allow for healing.

So to help you prevent this scenario from happening, we’ve got some tips about foot care for all of you who get that daily “runner’s high”:

  • Always warm up. Start slow to be sure that the soft tissues in your body are not feeling tight. The more time you allow yourself to get warm, the less likely the chance that you’ll strain tendons, ligaments, and muscles that weren’t ready to go.
  • Stretch. Some people like to do this step before a run, as part of warming up; others like to do it after the running session as part of a cool down. Whichever camp you’re in, remember to stretch your muscles to give them a chance to rebuild and stay loose before/after a tough or long running session.
  • Strength train. It may not feel necessary, but building muscles to be strong and resilient can help prevent problems like joint pain and overuse injuries, like plantar fasciitis.
  • Training. Be sure to practice, especially if you’re planning on participating in a running event, like a marathon. Training beforehand lessens the chances that you will encounter problems in your feet and ankles during a long-distance run. Increase your time and speed slowly over time, to prevent sudden soft tissue problems like Achilles tendonitis.
  • Proper foot hygiene. One of the most important tips for runners (and everyone else) is to make sure to wash the feet each day with soap and warm water. This will help reduce risks of a bacterial, viral, or fungal infection, which in turn, can also cause foot and shoe odor.
  • Choose the right shoes. If you’re not sure if your shoes are right for you, turn to an experienced runner to ask for advice. You’ll want maximum cushioning in the soles to reduce the impact on your bones and joints, as well as a snug fit and good arch and heel support. Depending on how often you run, sneakers may need to be replaced as often as every 3 months! Also, always wear socks!
  • Add orthotics if needed. Not all feet are created equal, so shoes won’t fit each person the same way. For those with any chronic issues, you can use over-the-counter orthotic inserts or get some custom made by our podiatrist.
  • Rest if injured. Finally, it’s most important to give yourself time to rest – especially if you are injured. Going back to running too quickly can cause a stress fracture to get worse.

Follow these tips to prevent common injuries or muscle strains, including: blisters, corns, calluses, Athlete's Foot, Achilles tendonitis, plantar fasciitis, shin splints, stress fractures, metatarsalgia, and Morton’s neuroma. If you have an injury from running, don’t hesitate to call us to find relief! Make an appointment to see our board-certified podiatrist, Brandon Macy, DPM at Clark Podiatry Center. He can assess your feet and the best treatment options to get you back to pounding the pavement. Come see him at our Clark, NJ office, which serves the surrounding Union County areas.

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1114 Raritan Road
Clark, NJ 07066

Podiatrist - Clark, Dr. Brandon Macy, 1114 Raritan Road, Clark NJ, 07066 732-382-3470