Houston podiatrist recommends custom orthotics to run without painOne of the joys I get is when I hear from my patients with their success stories. This is particularly true when my treatment played some role in that success.

Today I’d like to share an email I received from a patient. We worked together several months ago to combat a sharp pain in her arch. The pain was present when she was walking. Running at that time was out of the question. It hurt too much.

My examination revealed that her pain was due to an inflamed tendon that attached into her arch. I was successful in managing the inflammation using one cortisone injection. Once she was out of pain, I was able to watch her walk to see what the source of the pain might be.

When I watched her walk, I saw her feet flatten out and pronate. I knew that it wouldn’t take long for the inflammation and pain to return. That is when I recommended custom orthotics to her.

A custom orthotic is a custom insole that I make to address biomechanical problems. An insole that you bought at the pharmacy supports the arch. A custom orthotic is a precision device. When I examine you for it, I look at your range of motion from your lower back all the way down to your feet. I then watch you walk to understand how everything works together. Finally, we take molds of your feet in plaster. I send the molds to our orthotics lab with a detailed prescription. This tells them how to construct your orthotics.

This is why the orthotics helped my patient. The custom orthotic allowed her feet to work in a more stable and efficient position. This took the pressure off of the areas that were previously inflamed and painful. The orthotics took her feet that were unstable and allowed her to run with the needed stability.

At first, each time she went out for a run, she was expecting her feet to hurt her. After a while, she realized that her mileage was increasing but her feet weren’t hurting her. She set a goal for herself to complete a 5k. She easily met that goal. That’s when she sent me the message. She also told me that her next goal is to finish a half-marathon. She knows that with the help of her custom orthotics she will meet that goal also.

Custom orthotics are not magic. They’re science. And the story I shared with you is one of the many successes I hear from my patients with custom orthotics. For some, they help with their golf or tennis game. For others they help my patients be active with their grandchildren. Please send me a message to share your success stories. I love to hear them!

If you have had foot pain that you can’t beat. Perhaps your foot pain goes away but keeps coming back. Either way, contact the office to set up an appointment with me. I’ll be able to tell you if a custom orthotic may be the right treatment for you.

Dr. Andrew Schneider
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A podiatrist and foot surgeon in Houston, TX.
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