Frequently Asked Questions

Its often useful to start by breaking down the meaning of the anatomical phrase. Plantar means foot and fasciia means band. Thus, the plantat fasciia ligament is a band of tissue located in the foot, spanning the arch from heel to ball along the sole.

A healthy plantar fasciia is strong enough to support the arch and elastic enough to bear the impact of the spring in your walk. It should be able to flex within a narrow range of motion, if conditions are present that increase this range of motion beyond normal, then painful conditions can arise.

Risk Factors

Wearing improper, ill fitting footwear is one of the key causes of problems with this ligament. Shoes should always be chosen for providing good support and good fit, not merely for fashion.

Becoming overweight places undue strain on the feet, hence stresses the plantar fasciia ligament.

Whilst taking regular aerobic exercise is essential to good health. Extremes of high impact exercise can cause increased stress in this ligament leading to pain and loss of function. High and low impact exercise should been done in equal amounts.

Other factors that may be difficult or impossible to control include having a job that requires prolonged periods of standing, being born with an anatomical abnormality that affects gait, or normal ageing process that can lead to heel pad fat loss and reduced ligament laxity.

Symptoms

The pain is usually worst on standing particularly first thing in the morning, when you get up. It is a relatively common, usually occurring in the over 40’s age group. There are no visible features on the heel but a localised painful spot can be found in, and around, the middle of the sole of the heel.

Treatment

Treatment is aimed at minimising and reducing the pain in the first few weeks. It will not disappear quickly. Treatment must be individually designed, usually including strapping, NSAID’s , stretching exercises, ice therapy and sometimes night splints and injection therapies may be considered.

• Your feet have around 250,000 sweat glands, and they produce up to half a pint of sweat a DAY!
• The foot and ankle is made up of 33 joints, and there are over 100 muscles, tendons and ligaments too!

Chilblains affect the toes but can also affect the fingers, ears and nose. They appear on the skin as small, itchy swellings which occur as a reaction to cold temperatures.

What Causes it? The majority of sufferers develop Chilblains in the winter due to the low temperatures. They are especially common in the UK because damp and cold weather is the norm during the winter months.

The low temperatures cause a restriction of a small branch artery leading to the capillaries which supply blood to the skin. When the skin is warmed quickly this can lead to blistering, redness and itchy lesions.

If you have poor circulation or if you work in an environment where you are regularly exposed to cold and damp conditions you may be more likely to develop chilblains.

Taking care of your feet by regularly moisturising them to stop the skin splitting is a great prevention tool. Warming your shoes on the radiator before you put them on and keeping your feet dry are also key to the prevention of chilblains. Keeping your feet active in cold weather is also recommended.

What are the treatment options? If the skin is itchy, a soothing lotion such as witch hazel or calamine can help. Most importantly, keeping toes warm and dry as much as possible. Occasionally the skin can break. If it does, apply a dressing to keep infection at bay. If you think you may have an infection then it is important to seek treatment as soon as possible.

An ingrown toenail affects the large toe in most cases but can also affect the other toes. An ingrown toenail occurs when a sliver of nail pierces the flesh at the side of the nail. The condition can be extremely painful and occasionally the toe can become infected. If an infection is present, the toe will become very inflamed and can produce pus and blood.

What causes it? There are many causes of ingrown toenails but did you know that genetics often play a part? Conditions of the foot such as bunions can also be the cause of ingrown toenails.

Toenails come in all shapes and sizes. Often the nail can be wide and appear fan shaped. Rather than the nail growing straight it may grow into the flesh resulting in an ingrown toenail.

Many of us also cut our toenails incorrectly. The nails should be trimmed straight across but we tend to curve the nails at the edges. We also cut the nails too short . This can encourage the nail to grow into the nail bed.

What are the treatment options? Ingrown toenail management can be carried out by your Podiatrist. IF your inf=grown toenail isnt too severe, it can usually be trimmed by your Podiatrist. He or she will lift the edge of your nail and cut away the ingrown section. A local anaesthetic can be administered if your toe is too painful to touch.

If you are beyond self-treatment because an infection has started to set in then you need to book an appointment with your Podiatrist as soon as possible. Your Podiatrist will be able to remove the sliver of nail which has become ingrown and cut the nail to try prevent it from becoming ingrown again.

If the toenail is causing extreme pain and the are is infected and swollen, your Podiatrist may have to perform surgery on the toe to remedy the situation. This could mean having some or all of the toenail or surrounding skin cut and removed. The procedure is carried out under a local anaesthetic and is a permanent solution.

A bunion appears as a large boney bump on the side of the foot. Bunions may be extremely painful and make it difficult to wear enclosed full shoes. Bunions are formed when the big toe loses its flexibility to bend during walking, due to a mal-aligment of the first metatarsal and the big toe. Experts suggest bunions are hereditary and not caused but aggravated by poor fitting footwear. Small bunions (bunionettes) can form on the joint of the little toes.

Treatment

Footwear advice, good proper fitting shoes will help reduce friction on the boney bunion bump. Bunion protector pads and splints are helpful in reducing pain caused by footwear. Orthotics can help slow the progression of the deformity, but are only of benefit in the early stages. Surgery is an option for late stage deformity or very painful and limiting bunions.

Verrucae are warty growths which occur on the soles of your toes or feet. They are caused by the Human papilloma virus and can be contracted in areas such as swimming baths and changing rooms. They are highly contagious and should you be unlucky enough to catch the virus, precautions should be taken not too walk around barefoot anywhere.

Verrucae can often be painful and unsightly and extremely difficult to treat. Medicaments containing Salicylic acid have been proven to be the most effective treatment option. Over the counter preparations are available. However, if these are unsuccessful your Podiatrist can use stronger preparations of this acid therapy. Dry needling is now available which is carried out under a local anaesthetic.

Yes, ground floor access. Directly outside the surgery are disabled parking facilities for Blue Badge holders.