When You Need to See a Podiatrist

by Ralph Trayfalgar

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You might be going about your day like any other when you slip and fall all of a sudden. Your foot and ankle hurt and there might be a cut or bruise somewhere, but it doesn't feel too bad and you feel like you can walk home without too much trouble. Should you see a doctor?

We've all asked ourselves that question one way or another at some point in our lives. The problem is that the answer to this question isn't exactly the same all the time. On one hand, most people shouldn't have too much trouble dealing with a cut, scrape, or sore feet after a long day. On the other, most people wouldn't really know whether or not that sore spot on your foot or ankle is just that or a sign of a much more serious problem. So, should you see a doctor?

The Short Answer

With what we've discussed so far, the short answer is "it depends." The reason behind this is that, aside from obviously serious foot injuries, going to your podiatrist is the best way to know how serious your foot problem is and how you can get better as fast as possible. For this reason, going to your podiatrist would be a safe move if you aren't sure what sort of foot problem you're dealing with. Most of the time, however, foot and ankle problems are a lot more subtle and don't happen all at once like an injury from an accident. So how are we supposed to know if foot pain is something serious? This leads us to our long answer.

The Long Answer

The long answer is that you should have your foot or ankle problem checked out by a podiatrist when your foot or ankle problem is severe and/or chronic. Let's break it down:

What we call a severe foot problem is anything that is painful enough that it prevents you from being able to move the affected foot and ankle normally. A couple of examples of severe foot and ankle problems include:

• Fractures are arguably the most obvious injuries that will be talked about in this article. Fractures usually happen as the result of a strong impact to the bones of the legs, feet, or ankles, causing said bones to move out of their original position (also called a dislocation) or sustain cracks that may or may not split the bone entirely. As one can probably tell, fractures are incredibly painful and require immediate medical attention.

• Sprains are by far the most common ankle injury that one can get. Whether you play sports or not, whether you exercise or not, whether your work requires you to walk around a lot or not, none of that matters; all it takes is for you to place a bit too much weight on a foot at the wrong angle for you to get a sprain. While some sprains can be more severe than others, you would still want to have a sprain checked out by your podiatrist, as sprains can create very small tears in the tendons that can worsen injuries that you might have in the future.

• Plantar fasciitis is another common foot problem that can happen to just about anyone. It is inflammation of a length of tissue that connects your toes to your heel bone, and is characterised by a very sharp pain at a point under your arch and just in front of the heel bone. While it usually goes away with a bit of rest, plantar fasciitis can be caused by other factors such as wearing shoes that don't support your feet and arches well enough, or by walking or running in a way that places too much weight on the heel.

While many foot conditions are so painful that it becomes difficult to walk, many more tend to be more subtle and more of a mild annoyance. Of course, being on your feet all day can and will get your feet and ankles a bit sore, sure, but there is no benefit in ignoring these pains once you start getting them every single day. These are signs of chronic foot problems, and can be caused by anything from wearing shoes that don't fit right to deformities in your feet (such as bunions and heel spurs). In many cases, some of the other foot conditions we've talked about such as plantar fasciitis can become a chronic foot problem, which is often an indicator of a much more serious problem with how your legs, feet, and ankles are working. Getting these chronic foot conditions should be enough of a reminder for you to talk to your podiatrist as soon as you can, so you can get back to enjoying your feet again.