October 8th is International Podiatry Day, and at Patrick Fettinger, DPM, we want to take this opportunity to reach out to our Fairfield County patients and share some of the many ways a podiatrist can help you.
What Your Podiatrist Can Do
You already know if you injure your foot or ankle or are experiencing podiatric pain or unusual symptoms, you should contact our podiatrist, Dr. Patrick J. Fettinger, by calling our New Fairfield (203-746-9660) or Middlebury (203-598-0357) office for an appointment.
There are other ways a podiatrist can help improve your foot health, including:
- Educate patients on how to be proactive in protecting foot health. In many instances, you can avoid foot problems with the proper care and precautions. Learning how to trim your toenails correctly, for example, can prevent ingrown nails. Recognizing the early signs of an infection can keep diabetic patients out of the hospital.
- Assess risk for developing foot and foot-related diseases and conditions. Many problems can affect the health of your feet, from arthritis to osteoporosis to falling. The foot doctor can help determine risk factors that may increase your chances of having a particular problem. By getting a complete medical history, evaluating your lifestyle, and working with other physicians, the foot doctor can make suggestions to help you lower your risk and prevent damage to your feet.
- Perform foot and ankle surgeries. Surgery can permanently correct deformities such as bunions, hammertoes, claw toes, and fractures ruptured Achilles tendons or problems with ligaments or tendons that don’t respond to conservative treatments.
- Improve sports performance. The podiatrist has ways of analyzing your gait or walking pattern. The biomechanics of your unique feet can affect how you play a sport and what injuries you might be prone to. If you sustain a sports injury, the podiatrist can prescribe physical therapy and exercises to speed recovery.
- Fit patients with custom shoe inserts known as orthotics. Custom orthotics are one way to correct biomechanical dysfunction that may be impeding your ability to walk, run or stand. Orthotics can also pad and protect a sensitive or injured area on the foot.
If you have questions about what your podiatrist can do, please don’t hesitate to contact us. In New Fairfield (203-746-9660) or Middlebury (203-598-0357)