Foot & Ankle Pain

Stress fractures in the foot are typically caused by overuse. They are the most common with runners, especially those who run long distances. The most common type of foot stress fracture is a calcaneal stress fracture or when you break part of your heel bone. If you have a calcaneal stress fracture you might be experiencing symptoms like:

• Pain that worsens over time and becomes worse when your put weight on your foot
• A bruised heel
• Pain when you squeeze your heel bone

Treatment for a stress fracture in your foot varies depends on how severe the fracture is. The first step is to rest and stay off your feet as much as you can. Your doctor might put a cast on your foot to protect it. Throughout your recovery your Proliance Physical & Hand Therapy expert will work with you to help you maintain your overall fitness, typically through activities like swimming or cycling that don’t require putting weight on your heels. Your therapist’s goal is to help you regain muscle strength and flexibility to ensure you can get back to the activities you love as quickly as possible.

Many things can cause ankle instability, but when your ankle ligaments are stretched out, the chance for ankle sprains increases significantly. Even though the ligaments may not be able to be shortened back to normal, muscles around the ankle can be strengthened to compensate and provide better stability for sports, running, and all your daily activities.

Physical therapy can be very helpful with ankle instability problems. Your Proliance Physical & Hand Therapy expert has a lot of experience collaborating with doctors to rehabilitate ankle and foot injuries. After a careful assessment of your ankle and foot joint movements, in collaboration with your doctor, your therapist will identify which muscles need to be strengthened to add the support and stability your ankles need. They will put together a custom treatment plan to get you back to the activities you love as quickly as possible.

Plantar fasciitis feels like a sharp, burning pain, when you take your first steps in the morning, when you stand up after a prolonged period of sitting or after prolonged walking or running. It happens when inflammation builds up in the plantar fascia, a thick band of tissue under your foot that runs from your heel to the ball of the foot. Plantar fasciitis is caused by tightening of the tissues under the foot and sometimes up the leg. Fallen arches, changes in the shape of your foot, changes in walking posture, even changes in the shoes you wear and trigger plantar fasciitis. Pain may be focused in your heel but can extend under the arch as well.

Physical therapy can be very helpful if you have plantar fasciitis. Your Proliance Physical & Hand Therapy expert, in collaboration with your doctor, will begin by evaluating how you move and walk, your posture, and your foot and ankle mobility. Once your therapist has an accurate diagnosis of the root causes of your plantar fasciitis, they will develop a personalized treatment plan to relieve your pain and strengthen your feet to keep plantar fasciitis from coming back.

The suffix “itis” means inflammation. Achilles tendonitis is inflammation of the Achilles tendon that attaches your calf muscle to the bone at the back of your heel. If you have Achilles tendonitis it was probably caused by tightness in your hamstrings and calf muscles. Changes to the range of movement in your ankle and foot can change how you walk, and this too can put extra strain on your Achilles tendon. If you have Achilles tendonitis the back of your ankle and heel will likely be painful to touch, especially after a long walk. Rest helps with Achilles tendonitis; walking makes it worse.

The good news is that physical therapy can be very successful to help heal Achilles tendonitis. Your therapist will evaluate the mobility, range of motion, and strength of your leg, ankle, and foot. They will also check your balance and walking patterns. The goal is to accurately identify the root causes of your pain, eliminate the pain, maximize the healing, and get you back to the activities you love as quickly as possible.

Fat pad atrophy causes pain in your heel. It happens when the fatty cushion of the foot’s plantar breaks down. This can happen in the heel or forefoot.

If your Proliance Physical & Hand Therapy expert, in collaboration with your doctor, identifies fat pad atrophy as the source of your foot pain, they can treat it with foot exercises that help reduce inflammation and improve flexibility. In addition to therapy, they may also recommend that you reduce symptoms by improving the cushioning under your feet with cushioned socks, heel cups, or shoe padding or inserts. Your therapist’s goal is to accurately identify the root causes of your foot pain, provide the ideal treatment plan, and get you back to the activities you love as quickly as possible.