Heel pain in Children as a result of Sever’s condition is such a common problem. We see it on a daily basis and knowledge within the community is good on the topic.

Dr Google ensures there are plenty of references (including this one) for parents to read up on this topic. Click here for a basic rundown, and be sure to subscribe to get more detailed content when it becomes available

This can be a great thing as a parent might come to learn that their Child is suffering from a common, mostly treatable condition, rather than simply putting it down to ‘growing pains.’

With a topic so common we need to be mindful that each and every child, and each and every case is different.

Children need to be treated on a case by case basis. For example, sometimes foot function, structure and mechanics can be playing a major role. Sometimes none at all.

The goal of treating Sever’s is to reduce load and pain on the area until such time as the Child grows out of the problem on their own. This can take some weeks to many years, depending on the case and the treatment the Child receives.

Be sure to listen to the audio recording to the right of the page, or below if you’re on a mobile device.

Pretty soon I’ll be releasing a video soon on this topic so if you’re Child has suffered from this condition at any stage and they are still under 16 years of age (usually the time you’re safe) don’t miss out on this chance for free information.

Be sure to subscribe above or below to be alerted.

Written by Stephen Iannazzo. Stephen is a Geelong Foot Clinic Podiatrist with 12 years experience treating Children in Private Practice. If you would like access to more of his information feel free to subscribe below.

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Aside from some small boutique brands and a few priding themselves on manufacture in traditional quality footwear heartlands, such as Germany, most of the shoes Australian’s wear are manufactured in Asia or South East Asia.

This offshoring of footwear manufacture has created an interesting and relatively new challenge for Australians…

We no longer have a set shoe size.

We might be size 7 in one shoe, size 8 in another or even a different size in the same brand.

This is for a very simple reason.

For those unaware of the way overseas factories work its pretty simple and does explain a lot

The factory owns all the equipment and tools required to build the part of the shoe (or all of the shoe) they have been contracted to make.

So for instance, the main component to make a shoe, the Last, is owned by the factory, not the shoe company.

If the company decides they need to change factories, for better quality, faster output, or economic reasons for instance, the materials and equipment, including the last, usually stay behind at the factory and the footwear company needs to start all over again.

This is where it gets interesting, because most of us would assume that the company would nail this change.

It wouldn’t be a problem at all.

Yet as Podiatrists we see different.

All the chopping and changing has resulted in a mass of different sizes labelled the same between the different brands. Its utterly confusing.

One brands size 6 is another’s size 8.

The picture featured on this page has 3 different runners, three different brands, two of the brands owned by the same company, and yet 3 different sizes! A 10, a 10.5 and an 11. All worn by the same person. Me!

We even see occasionally the same brand, same model, same size, purchased 6-12 months apart from the same store, having a gross difference in size.

Personally I’ve even seen a pair of same brand, same model, same size shoes that were a full inch different in length and forefoot width!

The company changing their last is the only possible explanation.

So what does this mean for us? All we want is our shoes to fit right?

It’s pretty simple… Forget your shoe size. Or at least only use it as a guide.

Treat every shoe fitting as a separate event and purchase the pair that fits, not the one that is labelled the size number you think you are.

If purchasing online, try to stick to brands that have good return policies or measure your foot and ask for a sizing chart.

By doing this you’ll avoid the common mistake of buying poorly fitting shoes and wasting your money.

We hear all the time ‘but I’ve been a size 7 my whole life.’

Well unfortunately… Not anymore!

Written by Stephen Iannazzo. Stephen is a Geelong Foot Clinic Podiatrist with 12 years experience treating a full and complete scope of Podiatry Practice. If you would like to subscribe to more of his information enter your details below (We Don’t SPAM)

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If you’re looking to reduce your chance of a foot complication caused by Diabetes there are 4 main factors you should consider.

For the purpose of this article a foot complication is anything that is caused by or made worse by the fact the person has Diabetes (Type 1 or 2)

These complications may include (but are not limited to)

What’s regular is an individual thing, and only after a Podiatry assessment can the Podiatrist advise you as to how often your should be assessed. This recommendation is made after a number of considerations are made.

To be brief, the Podiatrist will assess and conclude that you are of a certain risk. This is a universal classification that has been designed and is shared by the Australian Podiatry Association and the Australian Diabetes Association and determines how high a risk you pose of experiencing a Foot Complication such as those listed above.

It mainly takes into account

Recommended appointment frequency will be determined on an individual basis, with all factors taken into account, but mainly it is your Classification of Risk that will guide the Podiatrist in their recommendations for you.

For example, a low risk person may be advised to return in 12 months, whereas a high risk person might need to be seen at a much higher frequency, as even basic general foot care tasks such as nail cutting can pose a high level of danger.

This seems like a simple thing. The common theme we see in a clinical setting is the thought that when it comes to shoes; expensive means good.

I’ve lost count of the amount of times people have challenged my view of their shoes based on the quality of the materials used. ‘They’re good quality Italian leather’ I hear in protest all the time.

But is that enough to make your shoes good for you?

Podiatrists wont take an active role in this. However we’ll take a keen interest in your sugar levels as fluctuating or consistently high levels could spell trouble on the horizon.

You can do everything right by way of your Podiatrist, but if your blood glucose levels are out of control, the problems are only a matter of time.

When you have Diabetes, your feet need to be checked every day.

The best thing you can do is assume you have a problem with your feeling and sensation (your Podiatrist might even tell you your sensation is good).

Taking the mindset that your feeling and sensation to your feet is not perfect is a safe option I would recommend to everyone with Diabetes.

Why?

Because you’ll need to check your feet every day to ensure you haven’t any damage that you didn’t feel happen.

This is a great habit to get into even if your still young and healthy. It will help to keep you safe in the future.

We clean our teeth everyday from a young age right?

Written by Stephen Iannazzo. Stephen is a Geelong Foot Clinic Podiatrist with 12 years experience treating people with Diabetes in Private Practice. If you would like access to more of his information feel free to subscribe below.

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The post What are the 4 proven factors for Reducing Foot Problems with Diabetes? appeared first on Geelong Foot Clinic.

My 2 year old boy had recently acquired some brand new runners courtesy of Nanna.

They’re really flash, hyper coloured ones.

Naturally they’ve drawn some attention from other parents and knowing my line of work the onset of Podiatry related questions has been almost inevitable.

Some parents I spoke to had discovered that, as with many things, their Child’s feet or leg alignment was indeed not perfect.

The recurring theme is confusion surrounding whether to leave it alone, wait and see, or to intervene with treatment and to what extent to intervene?

So I’ve found myself regularly reciting an explanation I’ve delivered to parents many times prior to making my recommendations on treatment, or my recommendation to leave the child alone for now.

Let me start by saying to all the parents out there… You’re not the only ones that this question causes stress and anxiety for.

Nearly every parent I’ve consulted has wondered the same thing,

Should I be treating this problem or leaving it alone?

The fact is, even health professionals are wondering this. To intervene (treat) or not to intervene is a hotly contested and continued debate within health professions, and Podiatry is no exception.

Some research has shown a worsening long-term effect of treatment. Other research has suggested no change at all as the result of immediate treatment.

But is creating a long-term change always the goal?

Here are my 5 criteria for making a recommendation to treat or not to treat.

If pain is present, in my opinion it’s a no brainer, we should recommend intervention. Pain however, is sometimes very difficult to determine in a baby or a toddler.

Look for signs you may be missing.

Does your child always want to be picked up or put in the pram, after very short periods of time?

Is your child consistently wanting to sit down and do sedentary activities, while all the indicators suggest they would want to be playing (such as when they are with a group of similar age children who are off playing).

If your child is a little older, consider the fact they may have a consistent level of discomfort, not pain exactly, but some physical limitations such as tightness, aching etc where they might not know any different as they’ve had it since they started walking/running.

This might manifest itself in gravitation toward sedentary activities.

I often find myself explaining to parents that a heavy and continued interest in music, books or art is wonderful, so long as those interests are born out of a genuine interest, not due to any physical limitations. Limitations which may have reduced the enjoyment of physical activities.

Step back, observe your child and think.

Does my child really enjoy that activity, or are they avoiding something else?

If it’s the latter, they may be harbouring some sort of pain or discomfort.

Is there a genetically close family member, a sibling, parent, grandparent, aunt or uncle that has the same issue?

Does that family member experience any problems such as pain, discomfort, physical limitation etc?

If the answer is yes, It’s a strong indicator to get started with treatment, regardless of whether the problems have become evident in the child.

 If the issue in question happens to be a structural concern, such as flat feet, dropped arches, or in-toeing (pigeon toed) the level of the misalignment is taken into account.

If it’s significant or severe, or if avoiding treatment now is going to make it harder to treat in future if needed, this would be a reasonably strong indicator for treatment.

In criteria 1 we addressed subtle pain or discomfort potentially impacting on children’s choice of activities. Here we are not investigating pain, but rather physical abilities.

If a child is falling behind their peers, when running and playing around, that’s fine (we can’t all be Usain Bolt) however if there is a physical limitation in your child’s assessment, that together we feel is decreasing physical abilities, that may be a indicator to treat rather than not, if we feel the treatment may improve performance.

We don’t need to use a shotgun to swat a fly do we?

If the problem is considered minor the ‘treatment’ may well be to sit it out, and see what happens over time. Does it get worse, or does it get better?

If the problem is more severe, are we wasting time and effort with treatments that are too conservative or minor?

NB: Be cautious of any health professional that does not address these above criteria, either directly or indirectly, through the questions they ask and the assessment they make. All practitioners will go about things in a different way. Now that you are familiar with my criteria, you’ll no doubt recognise a focus on these areas with your own Podiatrist.

They may fall on either side of being too conservative, too enthusiastic to treat, or dare I say it, looking too much at the potential transaction value of your appointment.

At the end of the day you the parent need to be comfortable that the practitioner has your child’s best interest at heart. If you doubt it, even for a moment, seek a second opinion.

Generally problems of the feet or legs don’t need to be rushed, and a good practitioner will often send you away for 6-12 months so they can monitor development and make a comparison from ‘time point A to time point B.’

They will also let you know if it is urgent.

Above all, try not to be too anxious about things. Most Podiatry treatments with children are gentle and very well tolerated by your child.

At Geelong Foot Clinic, and other reputable Podiatry clinics, it is perfectly ok for you to delay the onset of treatment or cease treatment in the event you have a change of heart. You are always in control.

If your Podiatrist is covering off on the above criteria, you can rest assured that your decision will be the best one based on the information you have.

Written by Stephen Iannazzo. Stephen is a Geelong Foot Clinic Podiatrist with 12 years experience treating Children in Private Practice. If you would like access to more of his information feel free to subscribe below.

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The post Do I Need To Treat My Child’s Feet? appeared first on Geelong Foot Clinic.

A brief discussion that outlines the three levels of Foot Orthotics, or Arch supports as they are often referred to.

1. Custom Foot Orthotics: Gold Standard

2. Pre-determined arch heights and high quality materials: Silver standard

3. Pre-fabricated or over the counter Orthotics

The post Dodgy Toes and Foot Orthotics appeared first on Geelong Foot Clinic.

Geelong Foot Clinic Podiatrist Sarah Clarke discusses a wonderful charity organisation called Soles-For-Soles. Their mission is to supply footwear to poor African communities, so children can attend school and adults are able to work. Geelong Foot Clinic are doing what they can to help them in their work.

The post Soles For Soles appeared first on Geelong Foot Clinic.