Osteoarthritis

How Does Osteoarthritis Affect the Foot and Ankle?

Each foot has 28 bones and more than 30 joints. The following are the most common foot joints affected by osteoarthritis:

Prevention and Treatment

During flip flop season, it's easy to pick out distance runners. Many marathoners and ultra runners have discolored toenails, since the more miles you log, the more likely you are to bruise your nails. Lots of downhill running and too-small shoes can exacerbate the issue both cause your toes to slam into the front of your shoe.

Change in Shape of Feet

Nerve damage from diabetes can lead to changes in the shape of your feet. The damaged nerves cannot send messages to your foot muscles about movement. Your foot muscles become weak and imbalanced. The bones of your feet and toes may shift.

Fallen Arches

Definition
A flat foot is a structural deformity resulting in the lowering of the arch of the foot. This is usually due to hyperpronation. In layman’s terms we refer to this as fallen arches. A person with a flat foot or a highly arched foot that is fairly painful is in need of treatment. People with flat feet may have other foot related problems such as ankle, knee, hip or lower back pain.