Foot Pain and Dysfunction
The foot is composed of more than 20 small bones, which makes it a complex area to understand and treat. It has an important role in aligning the rest of the lower limb and can impact our spine as we stand and walk. Foot and ankle injuries are very common. Without proper rehabilitation, ankle and foot injuries will impact your overall balance and potentially sports performance.
Common symptoms:
- Pain when walking, climbing stairs or standing for long periods of time
Swelling - Pain in the morning especially for the first few steps of the day
- Weakness around the ankle
- Burning pain between the toes
- Increased pain wearing tight shoes
- Pain that improves with exercise
Potential causes:
- Arthritis
- Ankle sprain
- Tendinopathy, most commonly of the
- Achilles
- Plantar fasciopathy (or fasciitis)
- Stress fracture
- Lower back, hip or knee issues
- Metatarsalgia
Assessment:
Subjective assessment: We will ask questions about your foot and ankle pain’s behaviour, when and how it is limiting you, your previous injury history, what activities you enjoy and the goal you want to reach.
Objective assessment: We will look at the way you walk, look at your ankle and foot range of motion, muscle strength and length, your balance and we will do special tests as needed. We will also assess your footwear, your knees, hips and pelvis as they are all in the one biomechanical chain.
Treatment:
- Education on your condition and footwear
- Swelling management
- Walking retraining
- Modifications to your activities to reduce your symptoms
- Muscle releases of the foot and calf muscles
- Taping
- Dry needling
- Individualised home exercise program including strength, stretch mobility and balance exercises.
Plan:
From the moment we meet you, we are planning an individualised and holistic approach to help you reach your goal and be your best!
Rehabilitate, Educate, Innovate.
Providing excellence in physiotherapy from assessment to diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation