Just like a killer that won’t die in a horror movie, a painful foot condition that just keeps coming back can haunt you for longer than you’d like. There are a few foot and ankle conditions that are more likely to return than others if you don’t care for them properly, so with that in mind, we’re going to use today’s blog to spotlight three foot conditions that can come back to haunt you if you’re not careful.
Three Foot Conditions That Can Haunt You
Without proper or a full course of treatment, these three foot or ankle conditions can haunt you for weeks, months or years!
1. Ankle Instability – Ankle instability is a condition we’ve talked about at length on this blog, and one thing we always stress when it comes to ankle instability is that you need to work to get your supportive ligaments back to a pre-injury level of strength. If you never help these ligaments heal, or you cut your strength training program short, your ankle ligaments will remain weaker than they were prior to their injury, leaving you at a heightened risk for recurrent ankle sprains. Significant sprains can even lead to an ankle fracture, which is why you need to try to restore strength and stability to your ankle ligaments following an injury. Make sure you don’t cut your rehab program short or return to athletics before getting full clearance from your doctor, otherwise ankle problems can keep coming back from the dead!
2. Bunions – A bunion occurs when your big toe joint becomes misshapen and out of a natural alignment. This can lead to the formation of a bony prominence on the side of the base of your big toe, and oftentimes it also causes your big toe to point inward. Preventing and addressing a bunion during the early stages of development are key, because it’s impossible to naturally shift the bunion back into normal alignment without surgery. However, with the right care practices, you can limit its progression and symptoms such that surgery can be delayed or even prevented. Wearing supportive shoes that aren’t too tight can help ward off bunion onset and progression, so be very wary of wearing pointed-toe shoes or high heels that place more pressure on your toe box, otherwise you’ll never be able to get rid of a bunion on your own.
3. Achilles Tendonitis – Your Achilles tendon is the largest tendon in your body, but that doesn’t mean it is immune from injury. It needs to be the largest and the strongest because of how much stress you put on the tendon every day when you walk, run and move. Your Achilles tendon endures immense forces every day, and if you overload the area without giving it ample time to recover, the tendon can inflame and suffer microtears, compromising the integrity of the entire structure. This is known as Achilles tendonitis, and unless you really allow the tendon to heal and work to strengthen it, Achilles tendonitis can return again and again and again. Work with a physical therapist to strengthen the Achilles tendon and the nearby structures that help support it, and you can put the issue to rest for good.
Don’t let any of these issues haunt you for longer than they need to. Connect with a foot and ankle specialist like Dr. Silverman and defeat the condition once and for all. For more information, reach out to Dr. Silverman by filling out this contact form.