The foot is a hugely complex area of the body, comprising of over 20 bones and over 30 joints. It is very common for individuals to develop issues with the foot. Due to the nature of how the foot works, there are a wide range of problems that can occur. However, there are also many different solutions. Our physiotherapist, Sean, has recently completed training with the prescription of foot orthotics. An orthotic is a devise that can be inserted into your footwear to help aid your recovery from injury or to support your foot during physical activity. Orthotics can help a wide range of problems; most commonly they support the foot during walking and help to mobilise joints that are too restricted, or immobilise joints that are too mobile.

Orthotics can be temporary devises, ie. they are worn until you have recovered from your injury. Or they can be permanent devises, which would need to be worn for the foreseeable future. The most common example would be a devise you can wear if you have ”fallen arches”, or pronated feet. The devise helps to limited the arches from ”falling”, which allows the foot to be in a better position through the gait cycle, limiting the risk of injury.

The training that Sean has completed allows him to prescribe specific orthotics for your foot type. And if the foot issue is severe enough, Sean is trained in casting the foot – where the cast is then sent to a lab and a devise is made to fit that exact foot type. Other specific conditions that orthotics are designed to help are bunions, mortons neuromas, hammer toes, supinators (high arches), pronators (low arches), stress fractures, plantar fasciitis and many more. If you had foot surgery, orthotics can help with this also.

If you do have any problems or concerns with your feet, or if you feel you may benefit from an orthotic, please do get in contact with us and we will get Sean to assess your feet and advise you on how best to help your issue.

Yours in Health

Body Balance Physiotherapy

Ph. 086 3862001

Email. info@bodybalancephysiotherapy.ie