From the day you take your first step your mobility is dependant on your feet. Problems with the feet can hamper your mobility and have a major negative impact on your lifestyle. Of all the parts of the body, the feet are the most ignored and often the least cared for. Luckily, the foot is tough and can take a lot of strain and punishment in its stride. But sooner or later everyone has foot problems. Although these may be relatively minor, if they are not attended to in time, major health issues can often arise.
You DO Walk Around The World
The foot is a complex part of the body with 26 bones and a large number of joints, muscles, tendons and ligaments, all of which must function with machine like efficiency to ensure unimpeded mobility. These feet carry the average person over 50,000 miles in a lifetime – that’s more than twice around the world. There are 3 reasons why foot problems occur and whatever the reason, having the problem examined, diagnosed and treated in time will allow for both the issue not being exacerbated as well as a quick cure. Those living in the Bay Area are fortunate to have the services of Foot and Ankle Associates, a specialist foot care clinic, available to them.
Causes of Foot Problems
The most common cause of foot problems is badly fitting shoes. Symptoms of this are sore feet, corns and bunions and other seemingly insignificant problems. Although these are often considered the natural outcome of wearing shoes, this is not the case. If not treated in time, these minor problems can cause intense pain and make walking difficult. These could also develop into other more serious ailments.
The second common reason for foot ailments is the weakening of the muscles and loss of tendon elasticity that comes with age. While this is a natural occurrence, proper care and preventive treatment will ensure that your feet stay healthy and you do not have problems in walking.
The third reason is health problems in other parts of the body. Conditions such as arthritis, diabetes, strokes and vascular problems often manifest themselves first in the feet. Whatever may be the cause of the problem, the highly qualified and experienced doctors at Foot and Ankle Associates will ensure that you receive the best possible treatment and the fastest recovery.
Feet Need Specialist Care
Podiatry is a very specialized branch of medicine. Doctors of Podiatric Medicine will undergo 4 years of pre-med undergraduate studies, then do 4 years of course work in an accredited podiatric medical school and follow this with a 2 or 3 year hospital residency before they can sit for a state licensing examination. Because of the large variety of foot and ankle problems podiatrists must be well versed in sports medicine, biomechanics, radiology, dermatology, and surgery. At Foot and Ankle Associates, the doctors take a holistic view of the ailments and treatments are based on ensuring that these ailments do not affect other parts of the body, that relief from pain and discomfort is achieved as quickly as possible, the cure is complete and is such that it prevents future reoccurrences of the problem.
