Conditions
Conditions We Treat
Ankle Issues
Ankle Pain Treatment
People often talk about ongoing ankle pain that affects day-to-day activities. Many of us remember the occasional injury to the ankle. In fact, painful ankle injuries often result when strength and function don’t fully return after the initial incident. While some injuries may be mild and unnoticed at first, podiatry treatments from Acacia Podiatry in Darwin can help maximise balance and performance and reduce any lingering pain.

The ankle carries a lot of force through the joint, supporting the majority of our body weight through the relatively small area of the feet. Previous injuries to the ankle can lead to underlying damage, as can poor structural alignment and repetitive stress to the bones and surrounding tissue.
Some examples of less commonly known issues:
- Anterior ankle impingement pain
- Chronic ankle instability
- Painful accessory bones such as Os Trigonum Syndrome
Adults aren’t the only ones to experience ankle pain. Through growth, issues with alignment, posture and stressors, children’s ankles are a common paediatric complaint. Thankfully, there are many treatment options available at Acacia Podiatry to manage your pain.
Ankle Sprains
Whether it be a mild twist of the ankle or a terrible fall and significant pain, all ankle injuries need attention to promote the best return to proper function. Research finds that up to 40% of people continue to have chronic ankle instability after a first-time ankle sprain. These injuries often require a combination of treatments to help with recovery and strengthening.
A thorough history and review of the factors that cause and aggravate the area will allow us to provide the best management. Getting you back to pre-injury fitness is important, but we also take the time to look at factors that may have contributed to the injury occurring. Preventing recurrence of an ankle injury helps prevent long-term damage to the joint.
Peroneal Pain
Pain around the outside (lateral side) of the foot and ankle can at times involve the peroneal tendons. There are a number of structures that function to stabilise the outer foot and ankle, helping to move effectively, with the peroneals being important in this role.
Often symptoms of clicking, pain along and behind the ankle bone (malleolus), and along the side of the foot, can involve the peroneals as a tendinitis or other complaint. Many cases of peroneal injury can occur with ankle sprains and continue after the ankle injury resolves. Additionally, many cases of peroneal injury can occur from foot posture or alignment problems, footwear issues and walking patterns. Once assessed, these often unresolved pains make sense and respond well to podiatry treatment.
Posterior Tibial Tendon Dysfunction
The posterior tibialis muscle is one of the major arch stabilising and supportive structures for the foot. When there is significant pronation or angling inwards at the ankle, the posterior tibialis tendon and muscle are loaded more heavily than normal. If this progresses and continues over time, often the muscle becomes dysfunctional and the tendon can become strained and less supportive, allowing further progression of poor foot posture.
Early treatment has been shown to have good outcomes when properly assessed and managed, usually preventing progression to later stages of the condition.
This issue is often easily identified. It is usually found in individuals with pain and swelling along the inside of the ankle leading into the foot and arch, a quite obvious angle or pronation of the foot to ankle, and sometimes weakness noticed along the inside of the leg and ankle. Early stage podiatry intervention Is very important to allow healthy improvement and to prevent worsening.
Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome
Just as “Carpal Tunnel Syndrome” can occur in the hand and wrist, “Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome” can affect the foot and ankle. As there are a number of tendons and nerves entering along a shared pathway into the foot from the ankle, stress and injury to this area repetitively can result in painful nerve-like symptoms, changes to sensation and even affect the action of muscles in the foot.
The reason it is important for a good diagnosis is that it can often present as other conditions such as ankle and heel pain. Early treatment can be successful with orthotic support, physical therapy and footwear and activity management. The goal is to prevent worsening and the need for surgery.
Foot Posture Issues – Flat Feet, High Arched Feet

Flat Feet (Pes Planus)
A flat foot or pes planus posture can be both problematic for some and normal for others. Our feet go through changes from an early age and usually see a formation of arch profile through growth. Adult-acquired and paediatric flat foot (pes planus) are terms given to flat feet that are deemed to have problems that are occurring or developing as a result of flat foot posture.
From causing pain to developing arthritis or affecting other lower limb joints, getting the right advice and treatment is one of our skills at Acacia Podiatry. We can help by assessing what is normal and what is abnormal foot posture, helping to ensure healthier feet.
High Arched Feet (Pes Cavus)
It’s a common misconception that high arched feet are healthier and preferred to flat feet.
While there are significant differences in the structure of a flat foot and a higher arched foot, there are equal amounts of issues that arise in both. Commonly, high arched feet are more prone to lateral ankle injuries, forefoot/ball of the foot pain and pressure, hammer or claw toes, calluses under the heels and balls of the feet and ankle instability.
In some cases, patients present with quite a high arch and stiffness and changes to muscle groups throughout the legs and feet. Some of these symptoms may have been present since birth, while others may occur gradually over time. As this can be related to nerve problems, a good assessment is important to help identify the underlying issue, providing treatment to help reduce pain and further changes where possible.
Problems With The Heel & Arch
Achilles pain
Achilles pain and injury is a common adult complaint. Although commonly highlighted as an active injury, it present more often as an insidious chronic complaint, occurring alongside daily and work-related activities. Characterised by mostly pain in the mid-Achilles a few centimetres above the heel and also at the insertion to the heel bone (calcaneus), it is another very painful complaint that affects patients for long periods of time. Much like plantar fasciitis symptoms, Achilles pain is often increased by standing/walking immediately after rest, with aggravated symptoms after long periods of foot and ankle use.
Mid-portion Achilles pain is a fairly common type of Achilles issue. Often described as the common form of Achilles tendinitis, it is more correctly known as tendinopathy and is linked to degenerative tendinosis. Rather than an “itis” which is correctly used for inflamed tissue such as cellulitis or sinusitis, the tissue goes into abnormal development and becomes less organised and healthy. Strong pain and inflammation by the body reacting to this tissue often causes pain at the ling of the Achilles (called tenosynovitis), as well as lumpy painful changes at the points of most stress on the tendon.
People often worry about a rupture of the Achilles, which can happen in this section of the tendon. Mostly there are either subtle symptoms or unnoticed changes to the Achilles and a simple action can cause a break of the tissue suddenly. The good news for most Achilles injuries is that following proper management and treatment resolves most cases. More input from the patient gets better outcomes too.
Treatment is well documented and can be planned during a consultation at Acacia Podiatry. The methods involve two stages of getting you back to pain-free movement.
Step 1: Reducing pain and improving loading
Depending on the severity and changes at the Achilles, our treatment plans provide support and pain reduction, reviewing the major aggravating factors for your condition. Even if there is a partial tear internally with the Achilles, managing this will help start healing. Without addressing why it’s become such a painful complaint; patients often find resolution is a drawn-out affair. Taping, orthotic support, footwear changes and modifications are used to help modify activity in the short-term. Combined with physical and/or oral pain relief measures, this helps to get the complaint under control and allow for further treatment.
Step 2: Improving the tendon
Once things are looking better and improving well, the next step is to gradually improve the strength and capability of the Achilles, as it is a structure that gets better when strengthened. In addition to having changed those factors that may have contributed in the first place, specific exercises and strengthening that would have seemed like a bad idea when first presenting with pain are now able to be applied to reduce pain further and decrease the likelihood of problems returning. The Achilles can actually deal with a great deal of load, and with guidance by your podiatrist, you’ll safely make further improvements to prepare for return to full activity once the pain is resolved.
Insertional Achilles Pain
The Achilles inserts into the back of the heel through the periosteum, or bone lining. It has a protective fat layer and a bursa, a thin fluid-filled pocket, to prevent the tendon and bone from aggravating each other. Some fibres also travel south to form part of the fascia, which then helps make up the plantar fascia.
For many reasons, pain at the Achilles insertion is quite debilitating. Just like with Achilles pain in the mid-portion, repeated stress to the area can cause abnormal tissue. The painful lump at the back of the heel includes enethesitis. Inflammation and pain of the bony attachment and spurring is a symptom of bursitis, caused by aggravating the bursa and degenerative changes to the Achilles tissue. Supportive shoes can also rub on the painful area, increasing the pain for an individual.
Settling and protecting the area from pain can take a little longer than with pain in the mid-portion of the Achilles. Our podiatrists will fully assess the history of the complaint, usual footwear, main activities and other aggravating factors. By correctly managing and thoroughly investigating the issue, we’ll reduce pain as quickly as we can.
Arch Pain
Most of us will have experienced some form of arch pain over time, even if it is brief. People who are in jobs or activities with high load on the feet and long periods of standing are more at risk of developing arch pain, as are children with developing feet.
Arch pain can occur from a number of structures under the foot including along the plantar fascia, formation of a plantar fibroma, or as muscle injury to one of the many muscle layers in the base of the foot. Most people find effective treatment when consulting a podiatrist, particularly in the earlier stages.
Plantar Fasciitis / Heel Spurs / Fasciosis
When covering painful conditions of the foot, plantar fasciitis is one of the key areas that needs be addressed. Due to how painful and common this is (affecting up to 10% of the adult population at any given time), plantar fascia injury is seen all too often at Acacia Podiatry.
The plantar fascia is a thick fibrous sheet with mild elasticity, spanning from the base of the heel through to the toes, acting like a stiff, supportive trampoline mat for the foot. The fascia in adults is normally only up to 3mm thick at most, but is quite strong despite its size.
The plantar fascia is designed for multiple roles in the feet:
1. To help maintain the structure of the foot during standing and walking.
2. To act like a pulley and assist with good push off through the big toe.
3. Help the calf and Achilles work effectively.
4. To act as an elastic structure during weight bearing activities, stabilising the foot, allowing for springing back after absorbing force of landing and protecting other structures with similar action in the foot.
With this in mind, it’s not hard to see why it is commonly injured. The most common symptoms felt with plantar fasciitis are pain under the heel that can start off feeling like a bruise, pain that is worse after rest, throbbing pain and burning as time progresses. Arch pain can occur alongside heel pain, with findings of lumps called fibromas for some people. These often result from sustained stress on the longer sections of the fascia, not always painfully.
A quick note:
Plantar fasciitis is now considered an incorrect name. The “itis” part suggests acute inflammation, such as in the word cellulitis. In fact, the large majority of these complaints are slowly degenerative. Therefore, it’s more correctly known as fasciosis, meaning abnormal and painful tissue forms over time. For the simplicity of explaining though, plantar fasciitis can still be used.
Heel Spurs
For a long time, plantar fascia complaints were known as heel spurs. Unknown to many people, anywhere from 10-20% of the population have developed heel spurs, both under the heel and at the Achilles insertion. While they form over time with tension at the attachment between the fascia and the bone, it is not the spur that hurts, but the surrounding tissue. Even after resolving plantar fasciitis, heel spurs remain for decades with no pain. The large majority of spurs that are found incidentally when X-rays are taken for other foot problems and have no associated pain.
Heel pain can come from a variety of causes such as plantar fasciitis, heel pad injury such as bruising, and nerve entrapment, but the large majority result from plantar fasciitis.
What To Do About Heel Pain?
Treating heel pain is rarely straightforward, usually requiring careful and dedicated care to achieve results and reduce pain. Plantar fasciitis is known to cause pain well after the initial injury starts. Estimates vary, but often small amounts of damage can start slowly for many months before symptoms start to tell you something is wrong. This is probably why it baffles so many people as to where the cause comes from.
Step 1: Reducing pain and improving loading
Depending on the severity and changes at the plantar fascia, the most successful steps are to provide support and pain reduction and review what the major aggravating factors are. Without addressing why it’s become such a painful complaint, patients often find resolution is a drawn-out affair.
Often taping, orthotic supports, footwear changes or modifications are used in combination with a plan around modifying activity in the short-term. Combined with physical and/or oral pain relief measures, this helps to get the complaint under control and allow for further treatment.
Step 2: Improving the fascia
Once things are looking better and improving well, the next step is to gradually improve the strength and capability of the foot. This can vary from person to person. In addition to having changed those factors that may have contributed in the first place, specific exercises and strengthening are now able to be applied to reduce pain further and decrease the likelihood of problems returning.
Plantar Fascia Tears
The plantar fascia can support the force of your entire body during walking. When ruptured, we often see a significant collapse of the arch and the foot lengthens. A tear can occur as a sudden breakdown in the fibres of the plantar fascia. These can be partial or a full rupture. Depending on the degree of the injury, how it is treated can vary quite significantly. People can often recall a period of time experiencing plantar fascia symptoms prior to the event, with exercise usually the trigger to cause a tear. As with almost all complaints, earlier treatment of symptoms can allow for more effective recovery, so seeking advice with early pain can be vital.
Ultrasound is often useful in identifying a tear of the plantar fascia, as the degree of the tear and damage to surrounding tissues will help guide the best treatment. If a full or large partial tear occurs, immobilising the foot with a moon boot or similar is advised to help prevent further injury and allow initial healing. Surgery is not always warranted and is considered if there is a severe, complete tear that has affected the structure of the foot.
Once the initial phases of treatment have taken their course, we provide treatment to help the plantar fascia cope with the load, such as compression, orthotic support and correct footwear. Alongside this, gradual rehabilitation and strengthening exercises are recommended to regain proper function of the foot.
Sever’s Disease
Sever’s heel pain is a condition that almost exclusively affects children ranging from 8-11 for girls and 9 to 13 for boys. It is often a result of pulling and stress on the back of the heel bone (calcaneus). Around these ages, the bony centres and growth plates in the heel are not as solid as mature bone. Coupled with increasing body size due to growth and higher activity levels, pain and inflammation results from a higher level of stress than the bone tissue can tolerate.
Pain can be quite debilitating, commonly affecting the ability to participate in sport. Symptoms commonly start as a low grade ache like a slight bruising feeling. Sporting activities involving running increase the symptoms, lingering up to 24 hours after the sports activity ends. More severe cases result in ongoing pain for days and increase in pain after walking.
Assessing the foot posture, gait and foot and ankle function allows us to work out treatment modalities, including rest and ice, footwear change and adjustment, orthotic support and return to exercise programs. Treatment is usually very successful, allowing for early return to activity and preventing long periods excluded from exercise.
Arthritis In The Feet & Ankles
Osteoarthritis Causes & Treatment – Arthritis – Rearfoot, Midfoot & Forefoot
Osteoarthritis is another major form of foot pain that occurs more frequently with age. As osteoarthritis can affect any joint, the foot is a key area for this due to the high loads it undertakes and the fact that there are 33 joints in each foot. Arthritis was for a long time considered as a condition to live with once it arose. While it is true there is no cure for osteoarthritis, we now know much more about the development of osteoarthritis. For instance, some people are more prone to osteoarthritis from a genetic background. It’s also now known that the disease is dynamic and constantly changing, so it can go through improved periods.
Often when managing arthritis in the feet, podiatry can group changes into three sections (rearfoot, midfoot and forefoot) due to the nature of how they occur and how they affect the feet. Examples of this are subtalar and ankle osteoarthritis in the rearfoot, midtarsal osteoarthritis in the midfoot and Hallux Abducto Valgus (HAV) or bunions in the forefoot.
All forms of osteoarthritis have a few common factors:
- Structural issues: For all mechanical parts, different shapes can be better or worse for dealing with force. The foot is no different. Some foot features are more at risk of developing osteoarthritis in different areas. For example, the angle of the 1st metatarsal and its length, as well as the length of the big toe, can be factors for development of a bunion. Higher arched feet see an increased incidence of osteoarthritis across the dorsal (top) edges of the midtarsal joints in the midfoot.
- Environmental factors: Constant high load and injury are known factors in producing joint changes. Repetitive injury to a joint and its articular cartilage surfaces can onset osteoarthritis. Some activities and work roles can increase the risk of this occurring.
- Genetic factors: Whether it’s the inherited structure of your feet, or other factors around joint types, some people are more predisposed to developing joint changes associated with arthritis.
Considering all these factors, the best advice is to consider early treatment. If there is a family history, early signs of changes to the feet or if there’s been a few bumps and bruises over the years to joints, having an assessment is a great idea. Managing the aforementioned factors early on helps to reduce osteoarthritis from progressing, with improved outcomes in the long run.
Gout
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Gout is an inflammatory arthritis that affects the 1st MTPJ most often. It also affects other foot and ankle joints. While pain at the forefoot is often thought to be gout, it is less common than most people think. Gouty arthritis attacks occur when the accumulation of too much uric acid builds up in the blood, resulting in leaking into the joint spaces, forming uric acid crystals. This can be hard to diagnose immediately, but regular elevated uric acid levels in bloodwork and sudden and severe inflamed symptoms can result in a particular “moth eaten” appearance at the affected joint.
True gout is usually well-managed with improved lifestyle habits, the correct medication and podiatry input to reduce pressure and stress to the area. While gout is said to be the cause of many cases of inflamed foot pain in the first instance, often more careful examination by your podiatrist is needed to ensure there aren’t other causes of your pain.
Stress Fractures
Stress fractures occur when inflammation and repeated injury to bony tissues continues until the outer or cortical bone forms a fracture. The original injury is called a bony stress reaction and often feels like an ache at the area of bone, usually resolving easily with rest. If the rest periods to allow healing are inadequate, this progresses to a fracture.
Stress fractures occur much more commonly in the lower limbs and especially in the feet. Common areas include bones such as the longer metatarsals and rearfoot bones such as the navicular or calcaneus. Initially, X-rays don’t detect stress fractures and pain feels like a sharp strong bruising to a focal point on a bone when examined. Clinical assessment can often correctly identify a stress fracture. Some individuals with systemic health issues such as osteoporosis are more likely to experience a stress fracture.
The reason people develop stress injuries such as stress fractures can vary. With the right podiatry advice and care, they can resolve in a relatively short period of time. The aim is to prevent reoccurring fracture, allowing for return to activity. Common treatment includes periods of immobilisation with a walker or moon boot, orthotics, footwear review and activity or exercise load assessment.
Forefoot
Capsulitis – Bursitis – Metatarsalgia – Morton’s Neuroma
The forefoot, like the heel, takes on huge stress for its relative size every day. This is particularly true in the Darwin climate, where we can be active all year round. Regular cushioned surfaces and footwear are often lacking compared to cooler climates. Many people experience ball of foot pain, particularly as an adult, often starting as dull symptoms that then persist. It may feel like a bruising or sharp needle-like sensation to begin with, progressing to a sharp, larger ache with tingling and shooting pains to the toes.
Common issues that cause pain in the feet are historically called metatarsalgia, which is a non-specific term for pain under the metatarsal heads at the forefoot. Common injury problems include joint capsulitis at the base of their foot, “knuckles”, bursitis and nerve issues such as neuritis or even a neuroma. Often these are not found solely as one problem, but usually a combination of issues.
These problems mostly affect the middle three metatarsals and are more prominent in women, those who spend long hours on their feet, those who do lots of hard surface running and individuals who wear certain types of footwear such as high heels. Other signs of high pressure and potential problems can be calluses or corns forming under the forefoot. Like all foot issues, early management provides good results. If you start to notice pain at the forefoot, feel free to contact us for an appointment.
Sesamoiditis
The sesamoids are two small bones that sit under the head of the 1st metatarsal, behind the big toe, resembling two small jellybeans. Their role is to help distribute weight and stabilise and improve the action of the big toe to help push off in walking and other actions.
Pain can arise from injury to the sesamoids or to the joint itself. Common injury comes with repetitive stress, sudden injury and fracture and gradual wear and degeneration or arthritis. Bunions or HAV commonly involve displacement of the sesamoids as the joint changes and wears down. High arched feet often suffer more easily with sesamoiditis, acute injury and even sesamoid stress fracture. Often it is the inside or medial sesamoid that gets injured the most.
Podiatry care is essential for treating sesamoid complaints. We look at environmental factors such as footwear, activities and work roles and injuries that contribute, as well as assessing foot type and function, using orthotic support, footwear changes and other advice to successfully treat the area. Getting back to activity and preventing sesamoid damage is both entirely possible and important as early as possible to prevent the need for surgical intervention and long-term pain.
Bunions
Many people are familiar with the term “bunions”. In saying this, there is sometimes confusion as to what a bunion is and how they should be addressed. When referring to a bunion, most people would be familiar with a large lump and angle change to the joint, the 1st metatarsophalangeal joint (MTPJ) or joint behind the big toe.
We call this HAV or Hallux Abducto Valgus. The condition affects women more than men and has a strong genetic component, meaning many factors that allow one to form are inherited. Other factors do encourage formation of a bunion such as bad foot posture with excessive pronation, poor footwear, injury and certain forms of arthritis, such as rheumatoid arthritis.
Much of the reason for a bunion forming comes from mechanical stress where the big toe, or hallux, and its adjacent bone, the 1st metatarsal, deviate away from each other, forming an angle at the joint. This causes injury to the joint. The stress on the outside joint capsule and exposure to pressure and injury helps form the painful looking lump, leading to pressure against the 2nd toe and disruption of the smaller forefoot joints. Due to this we often see lesser toe deformities such as hammer and claw toes.
Juvenile Bunions
Juvenile bunions or HAV are typically genetic in origin and very rarely caused by issues such as footwear or injury. Symptoms and changes are similar to that seen in adult bunions. We encourage early assessment and review when issues such as poor foot posture and visual signs of change around the big toe and 1st metatarsal head are noticed.
Tailor’s Bunions
A tailor’s bunion is the name given to a bunion formation at the 5th or little toe and the 5th metatarsal head. Pressure from footwear and certain types of arthritis are both known causes of these. They can be painful with applied pressure due to inflammation at the edge of the joint and possibility of forming a bursa, a fluid-filled sack, that can become inflamed over time. With footwear change, orthotic support and padding, podiatrists can help reduce the pain associated with tailor’s bunions, particularly when addressed early.
Turf Toe
Turf toe is the name given to the injury under the 1st metatarsophalangeal joint, with sudden strain and often tearing to the soft tissue. It is often associated with sudden sprinting action, such as high flexion of the toe and injures to the tissue when the toe is flexed up at quite a significant angle. They are quite easily diagnosed clinically, considering the nature of the injury and symptoms. Often immobilising the area and careful rehab management, followed by padding or orthotic support, help the injured tissue heal. This can also provide further protection into the future to help reduce reinjury.
Knees
Knee Osteoarthritis
Knee pain is a common complaint that affects people of all ages. Knee pain may be the result of an injury, such as a ruptured ligament or torn cartilage. Medical conditions, including arthritis, gout and infections, also can cause knee pain. Many types of minor knee pain respond well to self-care measures. Physical therapy and knee braces also help relieve knee pain. In some cases, surgical consideration is an option to be discussed.
Knee pain that involves podiatry can relate to conditions such as osteoarthritis and patellofemoral pain syndrome. As the ground force travels through the feet to the rest of the limb, there are factors to be managed when treating knee pain. Knee osteoarthritis is often established as well-managed, particularly early on with physical therapy. During activity, force through the foot and ankle transfers to the knee. For painful and degenerated joint surfaces, changing some of these forces or reducing the amount of force from the foot often helps with managing knee pain.
Patellofemoral joint (PFJ) pain involves issues with the function and alignment of the kneecap, patella, at the knee. If there is poor foot posture and alignment, often managing PFJ pain is more difficult. Altering forces at the foot, shock absorption, footwear styles and changes often form key parts or your treatment. We are equipped to assess and properly analyse where these changes can help with podiatry advice and interventions.
Legs
Shin Splints
Shin splints affect many walkers and runners alike and can be a frequent reason that people have to discontinue activity. Shin splints can vary in type and cause, sometimes involving the muscle and associated soft tissue and/or the bone tissue.
It’s important to understand the reasons and causes of shin splints to make sure initial treatment helps reduce pain, with the goal of returning to activity without pain. Running or walking technique issues, footwear issues, foot posture and biomechanics as well as strength and conditioning can all play a part in developing shin pain.
Pain along the medial or inside of the bone is one of the most common symptoms. Impact and compression of the bone can lead to bone stress injury and in some cases stress fracturing. Additionally, pain can occur along the lining of the bone or the periosteum, something we call periostitis. Some of the muscles that help control the foot along the inside or medial leg and ankle can also produce shin splint-like pain, such as the tibialis anterior and posterior muscles. Leg pain along the front/outside of the leg is usually muscular injury and occurs due to over-exerting these muscles.
Some people experience a more acute version of shin splints known as compartment syndrome. This occurs when the anatomy of the muscle compartment allows for swelling and inflammation to cut off blood supply to the area, usually with quite high fluid pressure in the area. People usually notice quite a tight and firm pressure aching, as well as burning in the leg and ankle, with tingling, numbness and sometimes even weakness at the foot.
It is important if experiencing any of these issues to reduce running and seek treatment sooner rather than later.
Skin & Nail Problems
Skin and nail issues make up a large proportion of podiatry treatments, from ingrown toenails to corns and plantar warts.
Corns & Calluses
Callus tissue is formed as a protective mechanism by the body. It forms in areas of high pressure and friction such as on the base of the feet or in and on the toes. Early calluses form as a way of preventing skin break down just like a blister or an ulcer, but often becomes painful due to the force on the area and further thickening of the skin. Where calluses have formed significantly, it can then form a corn, a concentrated hard area of callus that is often very painful. They differ from a plantar wart and are often best diagnosed and treated by a podiatrist. Removing the callus tissue and ridding you of the cause is a successful way of giving you pain-free walking again.
Plantar Warts
Plantar warts, which are often confused with corns and calluses, form when the human papilloma virus (HPV) infects the skin. Often small and unnoticed to begin with, some warts develop into larger, difficult to resolve lesions that are sometimes painful. Often warts on the feet, particularly plantar warts, don’t have good outcomes with cutting out or freezing and need more specific podiatry care. Ridding your feet of these nasty little things takes dedicated care, so if you need help, feel free to get in touch for an appointment.
Nail Issues
Nail issues can be quite varied, from fungal infections to ingrown toenails and damaged nails. People can often initially avoid treatment due to concerns about the appearance or pain occurring. Thankfully, our podiatrists are experienced in all nails matters and our aim is to reduce your pain and improve your nails, with many of the latest treatments available to improve the health of your nails.
Nail fungus occurs when fungi and their spores invade the nail plate and underlying tissue. They are often slow-growing initially and usually not painful. It is also common to experience tinea pedis (fungal infection of the skin) when nails are infected, particularly in climates like Darwin’s.
As not all treatments work for each person, you need a tailored treatment plan from Acacia Podiatry to manage all issues that are affecting your nails, giving you the best chance of healthy nails.
Ingrown Toenails
Being a common and painful complaint that can affect babies through to elderly patients, most people are aware of the troubles ingrown toenails
can cause.
Ingrown toenails are best looked after with podiatry care and our aim at Acacia Podiatry is to provide treatments that are minimally painful or pain-free where possible. We assess and treat your ingrown toenails based on your needs, providing expert care to all our patients throughout the region.
Blisters
Treating blisters can be a big problem for patients, particularly athletes. Hot and sweaty feet, fitting issues with shoes and high-pressure areas all contribute to forming a blister.
Many people have small occasional blisters, but some can become quite big and painful, preventing wearing of shoes. A major concern for blisters is preventing infection, particularly in humid climates like Darwin.
Feet During & After Pregnancy
With all the important things to manage and consider with a new baby, often there is little time to worry about your feet. At Acacia Podiatry, we help women during and after pregnancy for a number of issues that arise.
Some of the common issues we help manage and treat include:
- General foot pain
- Change in foot size/shape
- Cramps
- Ingrown toenails
- Swelling
- Plantar fasciitis
- Forefoot pain
During pregnancy, particularly in the third trimester, the feet are under a greater load and take more weight with each step. Add to this the hormone change that allows for soft tissue to stretch more and having to change your posture and walking pattern (gait), it is likely that during pregnancy, women will experience painful feet.
More specifically, some may find they have pain such as plantar fasciitis, as the plantar fascia from the heel to the forefoot takes on more stress from weight and a change in foot posture. Similarly, as the feet change in load and function, there is a higher chance of pain under the ball of the foot. In the third trimester, studies find that there is much more pressure under the inner forefoot in walking and standing.
Women also experience a greater number of ingrown toenail issues in the third trimester and first few months post-partum. There are some simple podiatry treatments that can help if it feels like this may become a problem. If problems arise, seek advice early, when it is easier to get around and to help reduce influence of these issues from resulting in pain and issues mentioned above.
At Acacia Podiatry, we know that navigating pregnancy is hard work. Get in touch today for a number of treatments that provide relief for sore feet and nail issues.
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