Ankle And Arch Pain Causes

Overview
Fallen arches, also known as flat feet or pes planus, may be present at birth or develop later in life. The midfoot normally exhibits a slight arch, keeping this region raised during walking. Absence of the normal arch causes flattening of the sole. Many people with fallen arches have no associated symptoms, while others experience foot pain or fatigue. Treatment for fallen arches depends on the severity of the condition and associated symptoms.

Causes
Spending a lot of time on your feet. Especially when you are not used to doing so. For example you may have started a new job such as waiting tables where you are on your feet all day and wake up the next day with sore feet. This is a sign of damage and over time could lead to plantar fasciitis. Being Over-Weight. Never an easy topic to discuss but in simple terms, the heavier you are, the greater the burden on your feet. There are times when you're walking when your entire body weight is borne on one leg and therefore one foot, placing great strain on the plantar fascia. Wearing shoes with poor arch support or cushioning. A tight Achilles tendon. This is the big tendon at the bottom of your calf muscles above your heel. If this is excessively tight this can affect your ability to flex your ankle and make you more likely to damage your plantar fascia. Suddenly changing your exercise routine. Using running as an example if you suddenly run many more miles than your are used to or change to a new running surface e.g. grass to tarmac - these factors can put excessive strain on the plantar fascia and lead to plantar fasciitis. All of these risk factors ultimately lead to a specific change in foot structure. The term given is over-pronation and this basically describes rolling in of the foot and lowering of the arches. It is this change that excessively elongates the plantar fascia which can lead to plantar fasciitis.

Symptoms
Go to a podiatrist at the first sign of symptoms. Besides pain on the bottom of the foot, additional symptoms may include burning sensation in arch, difficulty standing on tiptoes, inflammation, more pain after sleeping or resting, redness, heat, localized pain in the ball of the foot, sharp or shooting pain in the toes, pain that increases when toes are flexed, tingling or numbness in the toes, aching, pain that increases when walking barefoot, pain that increases when walking on hard surfaces, pain the increases when standing (putting weight on your feet) or moving around and decreases when immobile, skin Lesions, it?s important to get a proper diagnosis and treatment plan. Let?s go over the possible causes of the pain.

Diagnosis
The doctor will examine your feet for foot flexibility and range of motion and feel for any tenderness or bony abnormalities. Depending on the results of this physical examination, foot X-rays may be recommended. X-rays are always performed in a young child with rigid flatfeet and in an adult with acquired flatfeet due to trauma.

Non Surgical Treatment
Treatment of plantar fasciitis is sometimes a drawn out and frustrating process. A program of rehabilitation should be undertaken with the help of someone qualified and knowledgeable about the affliction. Typically, plantar fasciitis will require at least six weeks and up to six months of conservative care to be fully remedied. Should such efforts not provide relief to the athlete, more aggressive measures including surgery may be considered. The initial goals of physical therapy should be to increase the passive flexion of the foot and improve flexibility in the foot and ankle, eventually leading to a full return to normal function. Prolonged inactivity in vigorous sports is often the price to be paid for thorough recovery. Half measures can lead to a chronic condition, in some cases severely limiting athletic ability.

Surgical Treatment
A procedure that involves placing a metallic implant (most commonly) at the junction where the foot meets the ankle. This device causes the physical blockade that prevent the collapse. It is a procedure that is only indicated for mobile feet, and should not be used with rigid flat feet. Dr. Blitz finds this procedure better for younger patients with flexible flat feet where the bone alignment is still developing so that the foot can adapt to function in a better aligned position.

Prevention
Warm up properly. This means not only stretching prior to a given athletic event, but a gradual rather than sudden increase in volume and intensity over the course of the training season. A frequent cause of plantar fasciitis is a sudden increase of activity without suitable preparation. Avoid activities that cause pain. Running on steep terrain, excessively hard or soft ground, etc can cause unnatural biomechanical strain to the foot, resulting in pain. This is generally a sign of stress leading to injury and should be curtailed or discontinued. Shoes, arch support. Athletic demands placed on the feet, particularly during running events, are extreme. Injury results when supportive structures in the foot have been taxed beyond their recovery capacity. Full support of the feet in well-fitting footwear reduces the likelihood of injury. Rest and rehabilitation. Probably the most important curative therapy for cases of plantar fasciitis is thorough rest. The injured athlete must be prepared to wait out the necessary healing phase, avoiding temptation to return prematurely to athletic activity.

Stretching Exercises
Inchworm. Stand with your weight on one foot. Raise the metatarsal heads of the unweighted foot while you pull its heel closer to your toes. Next, raise your toes toward the ceiling, and then relax your whole foot with it flat on the floor. Your foot should move like an inchworm across the floor. Reps 6-7 for each foot. Horsepawing. Stand with your weight on one foot and the other foot slightly in front of you. Raise the metatarsal heads on the front foot. Lift your heel ever so slightly off the ground, maintaining the raised metatarsal heads, and pull your foot toward you so that it ends up behind you. Return this foot to the starting position in front of you. You should really feel this one in your arch. Reps. 6-7 for each foot. Toe pushups. Sit in a chair with your feet resting on the floor. Raise your heel as high as you can while keeping your toes flat on the floor. This is the starting position. Using your toe muscles, roll your foot upward until the weight of your foot is resting on the ends of your toes, like a dancer standing on point in toe shoes. Roll back down to the starting position. Reps. 10-20 for each foot. Sand scraping. Pretend you are at the beach standing in loose sand. Use your big toe to pull sand inward toward your body, with your little toe off the ground. Then use your little toe to push it away, with your big toe off the ground. Reps. 10 for each foot. Now reverse the exercise: pull the sand inward with your little toe and push it away with your big toe. Reps. 10 for each foot.