Cold and Snowy Holidays-Winter Boots

The holiday season is here! This can bring cold, wet, icy, and snowy weather, which can be hard on our feet. It is important to remember to have warm socks and sturdy and water resistant boots or shoes. Patients often develop foot pain when winter boot season arrives, as many boots are very flat and offer little support. When buying boots, it is important that you cannot bend them in half and that you cannot bend the heel portion of the boots together. Additionally, you want to find boots with some arch support, as they should not be completely flat in the inside. It is also possible to buy an over the counter arch support to add to the boots to make them more comfortable. Podiatrists can also make custom molded orthotics which give support and control abnormal motion. These can make the boots more comfortable. Keep your feet happy and healthy this winter! Happy Holidays! Dr. Bender, 708-763-0580

Holiday Foot Injuries

The time from Thanksgiving to New Years is often busy in a podiatry clinic. One of the common things we treat during this time of year is fractures or breaks to bones in the foot. People are wearing fancy shoes, rushing, cooking (and dropping cans on their feet), cleaning, and entertaining. I have people tell me that their foot has been swollen and tender for a week, but they felt it would just get better or go away. Generally, if the foot is injured and remains swollen and tender for more than three days, it needs to be examined by a foot doctor and X-rays need to be taken. If there is so much pain or swelling that it is hard to walk on, it is essential to visit a podiatrist sooner than three days for an exam and treatment. Immediately after injury, it is important to rest, elevate, ice the area, and wrap the area. If the patient has diabetes, peripheral vascular disease, or another serious health condition, it is important to get the injury checked out immediately. Certain diseases can dramatically affect healing. If your foot is swollen or tender, give us a call! 708-763-0580

Blood Sugar Control and a Diabetic's Feet

Each week, I see several diabetic patients, and on each visit, I ask them what their blood sugar has been running when fasting. Many of the patients wonder why I am asking this if they are just coming in for nail care or heel pain or something else. Elevated blood sugars can affect the feet of diabetics in many ways: delayed healing, increased risk of infection, tingling, numbness and burning, pain, and eventually diminished circulation or blood flow. Thus, for ulcers, open wounds, broken bones, and other injuries, healing will be slower or delayed when blood sugars are elevated. Additionally, the chances of infection are dramatically increased for these same patients when blood sugars are higher than normal. For the long term, elevated blood sugars pose a significant risk for diabetic patients: nerve damage that can develop into neuropathy and numbness, increased risk of limb loss and amputation, and reduced blood flow. IT is critical that diabetic patients maintain a proper blood sugar to prevent these long term and short term problems. Also, if you are diabetic, it is important to get your feet checked regularly by a podiatrist. 708-763-0580