Foot and ankle injuries treatment on patient

Foot And Ankle Injuries

When you stop and think about it for a second, it’s pretty amazing how far your feet are able to carry you. By the time you reach your eighth or ninth decade, there’s a good chance that you will have walked more than 100,000 miles in your lifetime—enough to take you four or five times around the earth, or halfway to the moon!

It’s perhaps not surprising, then, that most feet will take some bumps and bruises along the way. Whether your foot or ankle injury is the result of a sudden collision or accident, or just years of wear and tear, our team can provide the care you need.

Acute Injuries

Accidents happen, and your feet and ankles are particularly vulnerable to them. An automobile crash or fall from a height produces impact forces that crack or snap bone. Ankles twist and sprain after an awkward step or an unexpected hit on the football field. In an instant, you can go from the top of the world to sprawled on the ground in pain.

Common acute injuries we see and treat include:

  • Broken bones
  • Dislocations
  • Muscle strains, pulls, and tears
  • Sprained ankles
  • Sprains of other joints (such as the big toe)
  • Ruptured or torn tendons
  • Torn ligaments
  • Crush injuries

Overuse Injuries

Injuries don’t always happen suddenly. Your feet and ankles are meant to distribute weight and pressure evenly and efficiently, but when they are asked to perform stressful tasks over and over again—without giving them a chance to recover first—they gradually break down. Many inflammatory conditions of soft tissues are caused by overuse, and repetitive impacts can even ultimately lead to cracks in bone.

Typical overuse injuries of the feet and ankles include:

Foot & Ankle Injury Treatment in Lee's Summit, Missouri

There’s no one-size approach to injury care. Our approach is to provide a comprehensive array of treatment options, talk with you about what your needs and goals are, walk you through your options so that you understand them fully, and then help you arrive at the best course of action for your injury.

More conventional treatment options include:

  • Rest—most injuries will require you to spend some time off your feet, or at least avoid high-impact activities such as running and sports. This gives your body a chance to heal itself.
  • Ice—Applying a protected cold pack periodically can help control swelling and pain.
  • Medications—depending on your needs, these could range from over-the-counter anti-inflammatories to prescription medications or cortisone injections.
  • Physical therapy—Stretching, exercises, and other physical therapy treatments can aid healing, speed recovery and rehabilitation, and prevent further injuries.
  • Immobilization—For more serious injuries, a cast, splint, or walking boot may be needed to stabilize and protect bones while they heal.
  • Surgery—Severe fractures, ruptures, or dislocations may require surgery to repair or reposition tendons, ligaments, or bones.

In addition, our office provides some more advanced treatment alternatives, including:

  • Therapeutic laser therapy—this recent technology uses a non-invasive laser to stimulate cellular growth and healing, helping you recover faster from soft tissue injuries.
  • HyProCure—for those with flat feet or misaligned rearfoot due to genetics or wear and tear injuries, a small titanium stent can be inserted into a natural space in your bone structure, correcting posture.
  • Minimally invasive surgery—Our surgeon, Dr. Joel Foster, specializes in surgical techniques that minimize the size of the incision necessary to realign the bone. This can improve outcomes, greatly reduce recovery time and infection risk, and even cost less.
  • EPAT – Extracorporeal Pulse Activation Technology (EPAT) is a non-invasive form of regenerative treatment. It is designed to stimulate and aid the body’s natural healing responses.

If you’ve sustained an injury to your feet or ankles, contact our office a call after you’ve received any necessary emergency care. Our experienced team has the training and technology to help you get back on your feet quickly, and are always happy to customize a treatment plan that’s right for you. To schedule an appointment at our Lee’s Summit, MO office, please call us at (816) 246-4222 or simply request an appointment online today.