Why Do Your Flat Feet Give You So Much Trouble?

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Your flat feet can make buying shoes difficult. They can make long work days painful. They can cause your ankles to suddenly give way. Who knew that missing a little arch in your foot could cause so much trouble? Here is why your feet give you so many problems and how you can find some relief.

Blame Your Anatomy

A large tendon that runs from a calf muscle to bones in your feet causes those bones to form a cup shape at the bottom of the foot. This arch also causes the foot to turn in slightly. This creates a foot alignment with your lower leg that is ideal for carrying your weight.

When the tendon can no longer hold that arch in the foot, your foot rests flat on the floor and turns out. The pressure on the foot changes and your ankles can rotate in as you walk or stand. Your posture is affected, causing pain in your knees, hips and back. The force on the foot can also cause ankle sprains and the feeling that your ankle won't support you when you step on it.

Why Other People Are Blessed With an Arched Foot and You're Not

A number of factors contribute to you having flat feet, also known as fallen arches:

• Your family history
• Foot and leg injuries - Damage to the tendon that holds the arch by a sports injury or other accident can cause you to lose the arch.
• Overuse - Runners can develop fallen arches by overstretching the muscles and tendons and not giving them sufficient recovery time.
• Obesity - If the muscles and tendons in the lower leg can no longer support your weight, they will become overstretched and you'll lose the arch.
• Disease - Some medical conditions, such as arthritis and diabetes, affect the health of the muscles and tendons so they can no longer support your arch.

Treatment of Fallen Arches

A visit to a podiatrist, like Family Foot Center Podiatry Group Inc, will determine how severe the damage to your arch is. The doctor will first try some non-invasive techniques to give your foot better support. Should these fail to give you long-lasting support and pain relief, they may offer surgery for a permanent correction. Some non-invasive treatments include:

• Physical therapy - Exercises will be used to strengthen the tendon so it can better hold the arch in your foot.
• Orthotics - These are used to hold your foot in the correct position to simulate an arch. Over-the-counter products may last for a short time before they wear out. Your podiatrist may recommend custom-made orthotics that will last longer and give you more reliable results.
• Braces and ankle supports - These hold your foot and ankle in a better position to support your weight. They can help to reduce the pain in your legs, hips, and back.

If those treatments don't work, some surgical options include:

• Fusion of the foot and ankle bones - This is done to create a rigid artificial arch in the foot.
• Reattachment of the tendon - The tendon that produces the arch may be re-positioned so that it has better leverage in holding the shape of the arch.
• Bone grafts and reshaping - Bone tissue can be added to your foot and sections reshaped to form a better arch shape in the bottom of your foot.

These surgical procedures can keep you off of your feet for several months while they heal, so surgery is looked at as a last option. If the non-invasive treatments don't get results, surgery may be the only way to give you a normal foot position and relief from the pain.

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20 May 2015