Have you ever had pain in your feet, ankles, knees, hips or back? Very often these issues are stemming from malalignment of the feet, and can be easily addressed with custom orthotic inserts!
Orthotic inserts allow the feet and lower extremities to function at their highest potential by ensuring optimal alignment. They can decrease pain, alleviate pressure, and increase stability all the way up the kinetic chain. In other words, correcting the position of the feet can alleviate pain and imbalances in the knees, hips, and back! In addition, orthotics are used to treat specific pathologies such as diabetes, plantar fasciitis, hammertoes, heel spurs, and arthritis. Our techniques ensure that our orthotics fit the contours of your feet allowing for maximum support, comfort, and function.
Although custom orthotics are more expensive than off-the-shelf devices, they last much longer and provide more individualized support and correction. Our orthotics come with a lifetime guarantee on the shell, so no need to worry about them wearing down!
How does it work? We use a pressure map to measure the way your feet react with the ground both in stance and while walking! This allows us to compare your feet right vs left and to other “normal” scans. Based on these results and our doctors’ clinical expertise, we create a custom orthotic insert just for you!
Below are some examples of conditions that may benefit from our custom orthotics:
- Plantar Fasciitis, a common painful inflammation of the sole of the foot towards the heel, most easily recognized by its tendency to cause pain first thing in the morning
- Arthritis, which often affects different joints of the foot
- Diabetes, which interferes with circulation in the feet, requiring custom shoe modifications or custom-built footwear to alleviate pressure points
- Metatarsalgia, a painful foot disorder that affects the bones and joints at the ball of the foot
- Heel Spurs, a growth of dense tissue or bone growing out of the calcaneus bone on the heel. This is due to excessive pressure on this region from changes in walking
- Flat Feet, also known as Pes Planus or Pronated feet. This refers to a collapse of the normal arch, which results in a cascade of negative effects up the chain to the knee, hips, and back.
- High Arches, also known as Pes Cavus or Supinated feet. This refers to an exaggerated arch, which results in increased pressures and other compensations up the leg and spine.
- Knee Pain, can often be a result of a malalignment of the feet causing excessive collapsing of the knee inward.
- Back Pain, can often be due to malalignment of the feet causing compensations in the spine.
- Recurring Ankle Sprains, due to instability of the ankle which can be addressed with proper orthotics.
- Achilles Tendonitis, due to overstressing of the Achilles tendon which can be addressed with proper orthotics.
- Shin Splints, irritation of the tibia (shin bone) due to repetitive stress from impact like running or jumping. This can also be addressed with orthotics by properly aligning the feet and cushioning the impact to decrease overall pressure up the leg during activity.
We make a variety of orthotics ideal for different shoes and uses such as:
- Dress shoes
- High heels
- Sneakers
- Cleats
- And more!
To learn more about how our specialized custom orthotics may benefit you, contact Stride Sports & Physiotherapy today to talk with one of our experts. We will have you feeling your best and light on your feet!