Chiropody and Podiatry at the Physio Therapy Centre, Haywards Heath

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CHIROPODY & PODIATRY

When your feet hurt you hurt all over.

Our Foot Specialist takes great pride in the quality of professional advice and treatment you receive. Our aim is to ensure total foot health for you and your family through preventative, routine and corrective treatments.

As well as offering traditional Chiropody care of nail and skin conditions we also offer specialised services to treat foot Pain including Heel/Arch/ Ball of Foot Problems, Arthritic/Diabetic Problems, Foot & Ankle Disorders and Sports Injuries.

SKIN AND NAIL CONDITIONS

We treat problem nails (including painful, ingrown, thick and discoloured nails), corns and callus, verruca pedis and plantar warts (by herbal, chemical and freezing therapy), cracked heels, athletes foot, blisters and sweaty feet. We also offer diabetic foot assessments and advice. In addition we offer vascular and neurological assessments of the feet in relation to medical complications when indicated. Advice and education will always be offered to prevent reoccurrence of any of the above problems.

HEEL, ARCH /BALL OF FOOT & TOE PAIN

We specialise in treating the following conditions by diagnosing the problem, identifying the cause and prescribing corrective treatments including special shoe inserts called orthotics and shoe recommendations: Heel spurs/ Plantar Fasciitis (pain on the sole of your heel often worse in the morning), Metatarsalgia (generalised pain in the ball of the foot), Morton’s Neuroma (nerve entrapment causing pain in the ball of the foot extending into the toes), Bursitis & capsulitis (inflammatory conditions where pain is felt in one or more of the metatarsal heads), sore ankles, Achilles tendonitis, heel bumps, shin splints, arthritic joint pain (pain in the toe joints when walking and or pain on the top of the foot), Bunion problems (where a swelling of the bone and stretching of the tendons occur on the big toe joint causing pain when wearing shoes and walking).

GAIT ANALYSIS & BIOMECHANICAL EXAMINATION

If you have heel/arch pain, corns and callus, inflammatory conditions such as tendonitis or bursitis, joint problems or a sporting injury Biomechanics is the key to discovering why you are suffering these symptoms. By examining the complex movements of your foot joints and the relationship between your pelvis, thigh, hip, knee and leg, abnormality and compensatory problems can be identified and appropriate treatment or referral can be initiated. Podiatry Treatment can include the use of prefabricated insoles or bespoke prescription foot supports as well as a stretching and strengthening regimen.

FOOT ORTHOTICS /ARCH SUPPORTS & APPLIANCES

Orthotics – What are they? Also known as arch supports/ appliances etc they are fully custom made comfort devices made to your exact prescription that readily fit into regular shoes. State of the art, lightweight materials such as carbon graphite and thermoplastics may be used in their construction.

Orthotics – How do they help? They support weakened structures of the feet, deflect pressure from painful areas of the feet, re-align the feet and ankles. This therapy results in an improved posture – beneficial to so many leg and foot problems.

Orthotics – Are they for me? A biomechanical exam and gait analysis is always required before orthotic therapy is prescribed.

Arthritis sufferers listen to professional advice related to exercise and how it helps them

It was found that there is an association between health care providers' recommendations for physical activity and adherence to physical activity guidelines among adults aged 45 or older who had arthritis. This was less in those with other health problems and were overweight.

Subjects who received providers' recommendations were more likely to adhere to physical activity guidelines than those who did not. The rationale for why people follow providers' recommendations for physical activity can be explained by Parsons' traditional sick role perspective, which states that people respond to pain, discomfort, and overall sense of well-being. They consult health care providers when symptoms interfere with their ability to function in their daily activities and seek providers' care and cooperate with them in the process of recovery. The difference in knowledge between the health care providers and patients justifies both the providers' assumption of authority and the patients' trust, confidence, and norm of obedience. Hence, with the debilitating pain that interferes with their daily functions, people with arthritis are more likely to adhere to physical activity guidelines when they receive providers' recommendations.

It is recommended to take 30 minutes of low- to moderate-level physical activity 5 days per week for people with all forms of arthritis.  The low adherence to physical activity among people with arthritis can be addressed with providers' recommendations in clinical settings.

Providers may ask patients about their engagement in physical activity and advise them about the benefits of physical activity during their visits. Providers can assess patients' readiness to engage in physical activity and develop strategies to facilitate patients' physical activity engagement. Furthermore, providers may assist patients in planning and including physical activity in their daily schedule. Finally, in every subsequent visit, providers may follow up on patients' adherence to physical activity.

These results indicate that health care providers should be aware of the effect of their recommendations on patients' adherence to physical activity guidelines and should promote physical activity engagement in clinical settings. Future research should focus on the influence of race/ethnicity on the association between providers' recommendations and adherence to physical activity guidelines among people with arthritis and strategies to promote physical activity, especially in minority populations.

Shamly Austin, PhD, Haiyan Qu, PhD, Richard M. Shewchuk, PhD

Preventative Chronic Diseases. 2013;10 

Risks of running in minimalist shoes

Advocates of trendy "minimalist" running shoes promise a more natural experience, but runners in a new study reported higher rates of injury and pain with the less structured shoes.

Three months after switching from traditional running shoes to the minimalist variety, study participants had two to three times as many injuries compared to runners who stuck with traditional shoes.

Be aware of the risks of running in minimalist running shoes. If you are going to go running in these shoes break them in over many weeks; say at least 6. Walk around in them for 6 weeks; don't attempt to run and then slowly build up the distance. This is likely to reduce the risk of injury initially and improve the quality of running form and reduce injuries in the long term. Ideally get expert advice to learn proper running form.

SOURCE: http://bit.ly/1eum9M5

Br J Sports Med 2013.

Tai Chi and feeling free and falling

Tai Chi,  another form of exercise, is  not only great for flexibility and strength but also for improving balance and has been shown to help prevent falls. A recent study looked at adults aged 65 or more and it showed that those that practiced Tai Chi reported higher degrees of confidence, better balance and the ability to carry on with life activities.

The positive effects of tai chi included lower extremity strength and flexibility, changes in proprioception (joint position sense)  which has been seen to improve even in patients with peripheral neuropathy, and reductions in anxiety or fear of falling, which itself is a risk factor for falls.

American Public Health Association (APHA) 141st Annual Meeting: Abstracts 279776, 282712, 289749. Presented November 3, 2013.

Physical activity helps prevent depression

Even a little bit of exercise can help to reduce the onset of depression. The latest look at previous studies showed that physical activity positively helped reduce the likelihood of depresssion and that was more likely to be so in women than men. It was expressed in the paper that this may be due to the social aspect of activity. 

The research shows that activity is good not only for depression but for a large number of physical conditions. It has a lot of benefits. So recommend physical activity for all patients, regardless of current depressive symptoms or potential risk factors for these symptoms

To find out more about the physiotherapy services we can offer to help you with  exercises

 and keeping healthy please contact us today for more information and to book an appointment.

Am J Prev Med. 2013;45:649-657. Abstract

Exercise and falls prevention

Exercise programs prevent falls among people older than 60 years . Such programs also reduce the likelihood of injuries when falls do occur, according to results of a meta-analysis published online  in BMJ.

Many older adults who live at home are vulnerable to injuries sustained during falls. Such injuries can cause pain and limit functioning, are costly, and may necessitate placement in a skilled nursing or rehabilitation facility. Even minor injuries can have long-lasting consequences if they lead to loss of mobility or cause depression or other psychological distress. Studies designed to assess the efficacy of exercise programs to prevent falls have not previously assessed prevention of injury from falls.

The studies were heterogeneous. For example, 14 trials administered exercise in groups, with 6 of them adding home-based exercise, whereas the other 3 trials only used individual exercise done at home. Seven studies included high-risk participants (older and with fall history). The studies also differed in the types of exercise: some used only tai chi, whereas others incorporated gait and balance and strength/resistance training to different degrees.

The researchers found that exercise programs had significant effects in all fall categories. 

The researchers conclude that exercise programs protect against both falls and fall-related injuries, with the most pronounced effect seen on the most severe injuries. They write, "the estimated reduction is 37% for all injurious falls, 43% for severe injurious falls, and 61% for falls resulting in fractures."

To find out more about the physiotherapy services we can offer to help you with  exercises
 and keeping healthy please contact us today for more information and to book an appointment.

BMJ. Published online October 29, 2013. Full text