Have you ever hit your pinky toe off of the coffee table? Painful, right? Did you limp for a little while after so it would go away? We’ve all been there. But did you think about how limping would affect your ankle, your knee, your hip, or even your back if you hurt your foot? It’s a little frightening to think about how limping for a day or two could cause issues with additional structures. That’s why we’re here to help with that pain in your feet.
The foot is the main part of your that holds your weight and holds you up. Because of this, seeing a Doctor of Physical Therapy for injuries to the foot is of the utmost importance to reduce the chance for additional injuries up into the ankles, knees, legs, hips, or even back.
Structures Involved
The foot has many tendons, ligaments, bones, and muscles within it. All of which are small and easily injured with increased activity if there is an overload at any of these structures. An injury to the foot ultimately affects your overall walking pattern, also known as your gait. Something as simple as walking can be influenced when your foot is injured, and it’s something we all have to do every day.
Common Injuries That Can Occur to the Foot
Plantar fasciitis
is inflammation of the large band that starts from your heel and goes to your toes. This large band is called the fascia which is a layer of tissue that is strong like a tendon.
Why it happens: This condition can occur for many reasons ranging from strength deficits to over use.
Symptoms: The pain in your feet for this condition, occurs at the bottom of the foot at the heel or along the arch of the foot. Often, there is more pain in the morning during the first few steps of your day or after a long duration of time standing/walking.
Turf Toe
Is located in the hallux, most commonly known as the big toe. The ligament preventing too much movement at a specific joint of the big toe becomes sprained, resulting in pain. This tends to most often occur in an athletic population that sprints, jogs, or jumps.
Why it happens: A force, like jumping or stopping quickly from a jog or sprint, hyperextends the great toe at the MP joint resulting in a sprain to the ligament.
Symptoms: Severe pain in the big toe when slowing to a stop after a sprint or jog.
Fractures/Breaks
Common belief is that a fracture and a break are two different things, but they’re the same thing. A fracture will stop you from doing your activities and make those muscles surrounding it weaker. Strengthening and returning to normal motion before returning to your normal activities following a fracture is important in reducing the chance of reinjury or another issue.
Why it happens: An increased force or load on the bones can cause a fracture. There’s also a possibility of an avulsion fracture, which is when a tendon attached to a muscle pulls on the bone, resulting in a fracture.
Symptoms: Sharp pain, difficulty walking, out of place or displaced bone
How We Can Help
All of these structures and potential injuries are things that can affect your daily and recreational activities. Something that you think is no big deal or that you can just limp until it fixes itself can cause much bigger issues if not addressed. We want to help you with your injury before it becomes a bigger issue!
During your initial evaluation, we obtain a detailed history, locate deficiencies, and ask you about your ultimate goals and what you want to get out of physical therapy. From there, we formulate a personalized plan to get you back to your previous levels.
Let’s start treating the pain in your feet to get you back to doing your activities! Give us a call at 703-450-4300 or CLICK HERE to request an evaluation!
