Don’t stand in pain: Common foot problems podiatrists treat

By Prianka Sharma, DPM
St. Joseph’s/Candler Physician Network – Podiatry

If you’ve lived in this area long enough, you shouldn’t be surprised at the number of active military soldiers and retired service members who reside here. And many of us have neighbors and friends who are first responders, nurses and mail carriers.

Why do I bring these occupations up specifically? Because these professionals and retired vets are among the most common patients I see at our St. Joseph’s/Candler Pooler and Richmond Hill podiatry offices.

They are on their feet so much! Naturally, this can lead to common wear and tear injuries. Let’s take a look at some:

Undiagnosed flat foot: I see this in our service men and women a lot. Flat foot is a condition in which the arch of the foot collapses and the entire sole of the foot completely or nearly completely touches the ground upon standing. The arch falls when tendons in the foot are dysfunctional, resulting in little or no arch. This can be painful when you are marching or standing for long periods of time.

Tendonitis: Each foot is made up of 28 bones, 33 joints and more than 100 muscles, tendons and ligaments – yes more than 100! Tendons are the strong cords of tissue that connect muscles to bones. When a tendon is inflamed, it’s called tendonitis and can cause swelling, pain and discomfort.

Plantar fasciitis: Plantar fasciitis is one of the most common conditions I see among all my patients. It’s inflammation of the plantar fascia, which is a ligament that is on the bottom of the heel. It attaches to the heel bone, expands along the arch and then attaches to the ball of your foot. Basically, it runs the entire bottom surface of your foot. Where it most commonly gets inflamed is on the heel. Plantar fasciitis can be triggered by many things, such as starting a new job, a new pair of shoes, weight gain,  trauma or new exercise regimens.

Hammertoes: A hammertoe is when the toe bends or curls downward. This causes the proximal joint of the affected toe to protrude or poke up. Hammertoes can be caused by the shoes we wear and how often we are on our feet, but more commonly, hammertoes are hereditary.

Bunions: Have you ever looked at your feet and noticed a bony bump on the inside of your foot at the big toe? You wouldn’t be alone. That deformity is called a bunion and nearly three million Americans have one. A bunion is a painful bump that is actually an anatomic bone that is malaligned. Bunions develop slowly over time but as they become larger they also become more painful. Severe bunions can also cause pain while walking because the big toe plays such an important role in gait.

While these conditions are common not just in the military and with first responders, the good news is they are very curable, and often with conservative treatment versus surgery. We typically start with X-rays and then consider next steps, whether that’s orthotics, injections, physical therapy or other medical modalities such as cushions, splinting or padding.

If surgery is necessary, it’s all outpatient surgery, and I do 99 percent of my surgeries right here at the St. Joseph’s/Candler Pooler Campus.

Let me leave you with my “Golden Rule” when it comes to foot care. If you are going to be on your feet for more than 20 minutes, make sure you have a tennis shoe on with support – one that laces up. You always want to have support, because when a shoe doesn’t have arch support, you’re causing excess pressure on your joints and arch and parts of your foot and ankle. You may not necessarily think this will be a problem short-term, but long-term it ends up becoming one.