Foot pain can be caused due to a variety of reasons such as muscle overuse, direct trauma to the foot and inflammatory conditions including arthritis. The discomfort caused by foot pain can be severe and may prevent you from completing daily activities. Physiotherapy can help relieve some of this foot pain and prevent it from reoccurring by improving stability and decreasing pain and swelling.
Causes of foot pain
- Footwear related such as bunion or related to unsupportive footwear or the wrong choice of footwear for a task or sport
- Postural issues
- Flattening of the arches of the foot.
- Medical conditions such as arthritis or inflammatory joint disease
- Trauma to the feet such as fractures (including stress fractures)
- Plantar fasciitis – inflammation to the bottom of your feet
- Achilles Tendonitis- pain at the back of your heel, usually due to overuse of that tendon
- Other causes such as referred pain from the back, hip or knee, vascular issues etc
- Occupational e.g. dancers, swimmers, footballers, gymnasts. These may require specialist sports physiotherapist support.
Why do we get foot pain?
Foot pain is highly prevalent in older people, and up to a third of people over 65 complain of pain in their feet. Foot problems in the elderly affect balance and postural control, leading to falls, immobility and loss of confidence.
Use of and prolonged periods of time in high heels often leads to issues such as sprained ankles, low back pain, leg pain due to more weight placed on the toes, a shortened Tendo-Achilles, an unstable gait pattern and poor balance, as well as increased energy consumption. wearing high heels and shoes with pointed toe box leads to corns, lesser toe deformity and hallux valgus (bunion). Long term use of high heels significantly affects the foot health and activities of respondents
How Physiotherapy can help
- Soft tissue massage – sometimes due to overusing muscles, perhaps when exercising, foot pain can occur. Your muscles can become stiff and start cramping, which can be extremely painful. A gentle massage by an experienced physiotherapist to help relieve and relax these muscles can help decrease the pain.
- Exercises – An Physiotherapist can give you an individualised exercise regime to strengthen muscles and maintain good joint alignment. This can lead to improved mobility as well as decreased pain.
- Joint mobilisation – This is where a physiotherapist can apply gentle pressure to the foot which helps to stretch out the tissue and restore a full range of motion to the foot joint. This also alleviates pain and muscle spasm. This technique can be particularly helpful in arthritis and rehabilitation after a foot injury.
- Taping and joint supports – these may be prescribed for short periods where this is risk of overstretching tendons or ligaments and to preserve normal alignment whilst healing occurs.
- Advice about footwear – The Physiotherapist is ideally placed to support with advice on footwear, however referral to an orthotist may be necessary where specialist solutions are required. Specialist insoles may be prescribed or moulded. Occasionally referral to a podiatrist may be required to assist with toenail cutting or other foot care issues that may be complicating walking and weight bearing.
If you feel that physiotherapy can help you overcome and manage your foot pain, please contact Home Physio Group on 0330 335 1016 to talk to our team, or alternatively, please use the contact form on the website and we will reach out to you.