What if before you visited a Podiatrist you wanted to educate yourself on Orthotics first?
Well lucky for you, that’s exactly what I’m going to share with you in the post below with our ‘ultimate guide to custom orthotics‘.
In our guide you’ll learn what orthotics are, what conditions orthotics are used to treat and what is involved with a full podiatrist orthotics assessment.
Orthotics are shoe inserts that are placed in your footwear to assist rehabilitation from an injury or reduce symptoms or progression of a chronic foot condition.
Functional foot orthotics are designed by your podiatrist to control the movement of your feet, shift the centre of pressure under the foot and redistribute the forces around the foot and lower leg.
By manipulating the forces, we aim to reduce the load on the injured or degenerated musculoskeletal structures of the foot, better allowing them to function within their optimal range and below their threshold for injury.
Click “play” on the video below to see how you can benefit from orthotics:
It is quite common for people to suffer from structural or alignment issues with their feet. Over 80% of the global population have feet that tend to pronate. Pronation happens when the foot rolls inwards and the arch of the foot flattens.
Pronation is a normal part of the gait cycle, that acts as a shock absorber for the body. Having structural issues or feet that tend to pronate, doesn’t necessarily mean that you will have problems with your feet. However, it’s when your feet experience excessive pronation, that people tend to have an increased rate of injury. Problems caused by excessive pronation can include foot pain, knee pain, back pain, hip pain, inefficient gait, fatigued muscles, arthritis, and shoes wearing out quickly. Orthotics can help your feet by increasing the shock absorption resources of the foot and provide relief to foot structures.
Orthotics are used by Podiatrists in the treatment and prevention of common foot problems such as:
Podiatrist Oliver Tate
Podiatrists are the primary health care specialists for ailments of the foot, lower leg and ankle.
They not only deal with the investigation and treatment but also consider prevention and rehabilitation of problems within these regions.
Podiatrists are very knowledgeable about the foot and its surrounding structures.
It’s this specialisation that allows them to understand the biomechanics of the foot and ankle. These areas are studied extensively by Podiatrists when qualifying at University.
Orthotic therapy is a very careful and thorough procedure, involving an injury and medical history, biomechanical assessment and Recommended Action Plan.
To ensure a safe and successful foot treatment, an extensive service is provided.
Below are the steps our Podiatrists take with your Orthotics Assessment.
A full biomechanical assessment is provided before prescription of any orthotic device. Various measurements are taken during this assessment to provide information about the position of different joints and the angles your feet have naturally. This will allow your Podiatrist to determine if orthotics would be able to improve your natural alignment. During this step the Podiatrist will conduct gait assessment, to determine the motion of your feet during the ‘gait cycle’ . The biomechanics of your gait are assessed using technologies like the video camera, iPad and treadmill equipment.
If the biomechanical assessment indicates that you would benefit from orthotics, to help with your foot problems, your Podiatrist will recommend the appropriate type of orthotics for your foot type. Your Podiatrist can tailor an orthotic solution to fit in with your desired outcome and budget. When you are comparing the cost of orthotics, it is important to check what is included in the price. Some Podiatrists include initial and any follow-up appointments, whilst others do not. Below we have listed detailed information on the different Orthotic options available from our Clinic. If you have any further questions, please don’t hesitate to call the Clinic.
Once the selected orthotics have been returned from the orthotic laboratory, you will need to have a fitting session with your Podiatrist, to make sure that the orthotics fit correctly in your shoes and are providing the required amount of correction. If necessary, orthotics can be altered or modified to fit patient. Your Podiatrist will give you instructions on how to use the orthotics and provide advice on how to best ‘wear in’ your orthotics. For some people the correction provided by orthotics can be quite dramatic, so you will need to slowly start wearing the orthotics in your shoes.
Once you have been wearing your orthotics for a couple of weeks, your Podiatrist should get you back to monitor your progress with the orthotics. This is a chance to see how your body is adapting to the extra correction and make any minor changes where needed.
Lifespan of your orthotics is dependent upon a number of factors such as weight, duration of use, activity of use, environment, upkeep and the type of device.
Custom and semi-custom orthotics are made of durable materials and you should expect them to last 4-7 years. To prolong their lifespan, it is important to keep them dry as the top cover is prone to deteriorating if they remain wet for too long. Often a new top cover is required after approximately 2 years of use.
It is good to review your custom or semi-custom orthotics every 12 months to determine if you still need them, develop an orthotic reduction strategy if you don’t or re-furbish them if you do.
A pre-fabricated orthotic typically doesn’t last as long, with most providing benefit for 6-18 months. They are generally an EVA foam device which depreciates much like a runner and sometimes require additional modifications and supports applied to them.
These are often a great option for acute injury recovery when you may only need the orthotic for a short period, and would be reviewed every 6-12 months, or in line with your Recommended Action Plan.
Orthotics require an even, stable platform with a strong heel counter and relatively enclosed upper.
This ensures the orthotics are fixed under foot and not sliding around in your footwear.
Good fixation via a lace, Velcro or buckle strap is preferred.
At Stride Podiatry, we appreciate that Orthotics can be expensive and we won’t pressure you into getting custom orthotics.
Instead, our qualified Podiatrists will provide you with a full Orthotics assessment and advise a suitable treatment plan for your unique foot problems.
Unlike other Podiatry Clinics in Melbourne, we will NEVER prescribe you custom orthotics if they’re not needed!
Click on the button below to book a comprehensive orthotics assessment online: