Items filtered by date: November 2011

Last Thursday’s Thanksgiving and the rest of the upcoming holiday season are the time of year when families all around Columbus gather together, reuniting nieces, nephews, cousins and great grandparents that may not get to see each other as often as they would like. As young relatives play together, this can provide a great opportunity for parents and other family members to observe and make sure that kids feet and legs are developing in a normal way, similar to other kids of the same age.

Kid’s feet are not simply smaller versions of adult feet. What may be common in an adult’s foot can be much more serious if seen in a child’s foot. As kids are growing, the earlier injuries and abnormalities are detected and brought to a podiatrist’s attention, the more treatment options will be available. Maladies detected early on also have better chances of being corrected more easily and not continuing to pose problems into adolescence and adulthood.

What you thought was a normal behavior may be brought to light as not being the norm when you can observe your child interact with a group of peers. For example, a child that regularly walks only on their toes is never normal and can be an indication of serious neurological disease. Certain milestones of development should also occur around the same time in all kids. Six months is approximately around the time when a baby should first be able to sit up on their own and by around one year a child should be starting to walk. Slight variation in the timing of these events may be normal. Kids that seem clumsy compared to other kids of the same age and tend to trip a lot can also be a sign of developmental problems that should be watched carefully. Even though hammer toes and bunions are relatively common in adults, children who develop these deformities early on can have a more rapid progression of the deformity becoming severe. Clubfoot is another birth defect that twists the heel and turns the toes upward. The sooner clubfoot is diagnosed the more likely bracing and casting will be able to lessen the deformity. Hip dislocation and dysplasia also occur in infants and their incidence is frequently increased in kids with clubfoot or other foot and ankle deformities.

In summary, it is always important to watch the development of your child’s feet and motor skills, and the holidays can provide an additional opportunity to compare your child’s progression with that of other children. Be sure to contact your podiatrist at the first sign of pain or other abnormal findings – and don’t forget that no matter how cute children’s holiday shoes are, they need to first and foremost fit comfortably!

Please visit www.ColumbusFoot.com for more information or call 614-885 FEET (3338) to schedule an appointment with a podiatrist in Columbus, Ohio. Columbus Podiatry & Surgery is located on the North side of Columbus, Ohio near Worthington.

If you are a follower of football news, this year it almost seems as though turf toe is a contagious disease at both the professional and collegiate level, even though that is not actually the case. Luckily, this injury has not made the news for sidelining any Ohio State football players recently!

While ankle sprains are the most common foot and ankle sports injury, metatarsophalangeal joint sprains in the big toe, or hallux, have also been very common since the injury was first given the name “turf toe” in 1976. Football players including Eddie Lacy of the University of Alabama, Kevin Kolb of the St. Louis Cardinals, and Evan Mathis of the Philadelphia Eagles are just a few of the players this year who have gotten medical attention for their turf toe injuries in order to not only to return to practice and games, but also to prevent long term problems with the use of the joint at the base of their big toe, the metatarsophalangeal joint.

Turf toe gained its name because the hard surfaces of turf, along with more flexible athletic shoes, cause the big toe to hyperflex up towards the top of the foot in a way that stretches ligaments and causes a sprain. This hyperflexion typically occurs when an athlete is on his toes running quickly and the foot is pushed down, flexing the toe past its normal range of motion. As with most sprains, this is a painful injury that will also swell and sometimes bruise. If you see and feel these symptoms in your big toe, it is also important to see your podiatrist to be examined not only for ligament sprain, but also for sesamoiditis, fracture of the bones in your big toe, or a tear of the plantar plate which is a structure crucial for keeping bones in place during motion of the toes. The metatarsophalangeal joint at the base of the big toe is crucial for normal walking and running, and can be very painful if it is not functioning normally. Thus, proper diagnosis and treatment is imperative in the short term for athletes who want to miss as little of their season as possible. In the long term proper podiatric care of a turf toe is essential for everyone as the injured joint’s articular cartilage can wear down causing arthritis and loss of function. When the motion of the big toe, or hallux is reduced, the disorder is called hallux limitus, and eventually when motion is completely lost it is called hallux rigidus. Both of these conditions can be very painful during walking and when severe enough may require surgical correction.

Hopefully Ohio football players will continue to avoid the notorious turf toe and players on other teams currently suffering from this injury will continue to receive proper care and treatment of this condition!

Please visit www.ColumbusFoot.com for more information or call 614-885 FEET (3338) to schedule an appointment with a podiatrist in Columbus, Ohio. Columbus Podiatry & Surgery is located on the North side of Columbus, Ohio near Worthington.

The time of year is fast approaching when only the most dedicated of fans will brave the cold weather to attend Buckeye’s football games. Staying warm at the games or any outdoor activities this winter. As snowfall becomes more frequent, it is not only a matter of spectating comfort, but also a matter of safety.

The damage that is incurred by your body depends on exactly what Mother Nature is doing and how long you will be exposed to the elements. When it is damp along with the cold, individuals become more at risk for developing what is called pernio syndrome or acute chilblains. In most cases, skin that is poorly protected or in contact with wet clothing will become red and slightly inflamed with intense itching and burning. Extreme heat over 85 degrees Fahrenheit and itching or scratching should be avoided and the area should clear in less than two weeks. If the skin is repeatedly exposed to such conditions, chilblains may become chronic with the red inflamed area becoming a more serious ulcer type of lesion.

Frostbite is a more commonly heard of cold injury that is more serious than chilblains and occurs with extreme cold exposure, even without wetness. Unlike in chilblains, the tissues making up the area of exposure in frostbite actually freeze with ice crystals developing in or around the cells. As with many cold injuries, the feet are commonly affected as blood is shunted towards the core to keep many vital organs warmed to a temperature that allows them to keep functioning properly. Frostbite is extremely important to stop before permanent tissue damage occurs that can lead to amputation. If the foot still has sensation, displays pinks skin when it is warmed and has no blisters or blisters with clear fluid this typically indicates that you should still contact your podiatrist but your foot should still be able to make a return to good health.

Individuals with pre-existing peripheral vascular disease such as venous stasis or atherosclerosis are more susceptible to developing a cold injury and need to take extra care to keep extremities protected. Everyone should be sure to keep feet warm and dry when braving the elements in order to stay healthy and be able to keep cheering on the Buckeyes!

Please visit www.ColumbusFoot.com for more information or call 614-885 FEET (3338) to schedule an appointment with a podiatrist in Columbus, Ohio. Columbus Podiatry & Surgery is located on the North side of Columbus, Ohio near Worthington.

While the Cleveland Browns play the Texans this weekend in Houston, another Texas team will be hoping that their punter Mat McBriar has made a sufficient recovery to help them score some points. Unlike the more commonly heard of sports injuries, including ankle sprains, pulled muscles or broken bones, McBriar has injured the nerve in his left foot and leg. Although he kicks the ball with his right foot, the planting foot also plays a critical role in a player’s ability to punt the ball.

Mat has not only been experiencing pain severe enough to disrupt normal walking, but he has also lost the ability to “lift his foot up”. This lack of “dorsiflexion” or lifting the top of the foot up towards the shin is of critical importance not only for playing football, but also is necessary in walking! The nerve that controls this is called the deep fibular or deep peroneal nerve. When the deep peroneal nerve is not functioning properly, the foot will not be able to clear the ground while walking, and the foot will slap to the ground instead of being slowly lowered as it normally would. This can make walking a very difficult and tedious process. Mat may have caused this injury by a sudden stretch of the nerve when planting his foot to punt the ball. Other causes of this nerve injury can include frequently crossing the legs, which is the most common cause, knee dislocation, or knee surgery.

Mat may also want to talk to his podiatrist about the possibility that he could have a mass in his foot that could be pressing on the nerve and causing his symptoms. A neuroma or a ganglionic cyst are both small masses in the foot that can cause problems on their own even without impinging on a nerve in the foot as could be a possibility in Mat’s case. A Morton’s neuroma is an abnormal nerve growth found between the third and fourth toes. A ganglionic cyst is an out-pouching of fluid from a joint that can require surgery to treat.

Symptoms of nerve damage can include, but are not limited to, pain that shoots up or down the foot or leg, loss of sensation and loss of function. If you have signs of a nerve injury it is important to contact your podiatrist as soon as possible because damage can become more severe over time including permanent loss of nerve function.

Please visit www.ColumbusFoot.com for more information or call 614-885 FEET (3338) to schedule an appointment with a podiatrist in Columbus, Ohio. Columbus Podiatry & Surgery is located on the North side of Columbus, Ohio near Worthington.

Halloween can be a rough time of year for children with diabetes as well as for parents trying to keep their kids healthy. Several Columbus area dentists and doctors have made efforts to give more options to keep Halloween healthy and fun for diabetic kids. A local dentist’s office has offered to buy candy from kids after Halloween for $1 per pound to then be donated to Operation Gratitude which then gives the candy to troops overseas.

Type 2 diabetes typically develops later in life than type I diabetes, but is becoming more common in children. This increase in diabetes in kids has been linked to the increase in childhood obesity. While type 2 diabetes has a genetic component, individuals who are overweight or do not exercise are at a greatly increased risk of developing the disease. In this sense, while walking house to house may provide good exercise for kids, the excessive consumption of candy should be avoided.

People with both types of diabetes often develop nervous system disease with loss of sensation in their foot. When sensation is lost in the foot, people may develop injuries without being able to feel any pain and continue to cause further damage to their tissues. This is why it is critical for diabetic patients perform regular self-foot exams and have complete checkups with their podiatrist. These areas where sensation is lost are typically where ulcers develop and can lead to amputation.

While diabetic ulcers are not often seen in children’s feet, it is important to take preventative measures to avoid serious diabetic disease changes that increase the risk of ulcers later in life. One good preventative measure to start with during the Halloween season is to avoid excessive sugar consumption. The more extremely elevated, or uncontrolled a diabetic individual’s blood sugar is, the higher their “HbA1C” values are. The HbA1C indicates an excess amount of sugar that gets “stuck” to hemoglobin, the molecule that transports oxygen to tissues. When the HbA1C is elevated, there is a much higher risk of developing problems with blood vessels, leading to diseases including high blood pressure and problems with the retina of the eye. By not eating too much sugar and getting a lot of exercise at Halloween and all year, kids with and without diabetes will be sure to have a scary good time keeping their feet healthy!

Please visit www.ColumbusFoot.com for more information or call 614-885 FEET (3338) to schedule an appointment with a podiatrist in Columbus, Ohio. Columbus Podiatry & Surgery is located on the North side of Columbus, Ohio near Worthington.