How to Keep Toenail Fungus from Spreading
Fungal nails are frustrating and embarrassing — don’t pass them on to your loved ones. Here are some tips from a podiatry expert to help you keep your toenail fungus to yourself.
Ankle Arthritis: How Our Comprehensive Approach Eases Pain and Stiffness for Improved Mobility
Your foot has over 30 joints, so foot and ankle arthritis is usually a matter of when not if. The good news is you're never left to your own devices.
This Arthritis Awareness Month, we want everyone to know their treatment options.
Dr. Maurice Aiken and our Bay Breeze Foot & Ankle Specialists team have everything you need to know about ankle arthritis and how our lineup of arthritis treatments can help you.
How did I get ankle arthritis?
Arthritis is a group of more than 100 diseases that involve inflammation and swelling in and around your joints.
Many types of arthritis (like the most common osteoarthritis) develop after years of wear and tear. The cushioning cartilage in your bones gradually wears away, leaving your bones to rub against each other.
The joint where your ankle and shinbone meet is one of the joints most vulnerable to osteoarthritis.
But there’s also arthritis that develops as the result of an underlying condition. Rheumatoid arthritis, for example, is an autoimmune disorder in which your immune system mistakenly attacks healthy joints.
Some experience ankle arthritis after a traumatic injury like a dislocation or fracture that causes chronic problems.
How do I know if I have ankle arthritis or something else?
Ankle arthritis is usually mildly to severely painful and swollen and often triggers a lack of mobility, stiffness, redness, and warmth.
Unfortunately, you can't diagnose ankle arthritis alone — that's why you should see us at the first signs of ankle pain. We run a series of tests and take detailed images of the inside of your ankle to understand exactly what's causing your symptoms.
We can quickly differentiate between ankle arthritis and other musculoskeletal problems and tailor your treatment plan accordingly.
If you have ankle arthritis, we may recommend one or more treatments and interventions.
Lifestyle changes
If you catch ankle arthritis in its earliest stages, you can simply slow its progression by changing your habits. Often, that means:
- Maintaining a healthy weight
- Doing low-impact exercises
- Changing your footwear
- Eating an anti-inflammatory diet
We help you identify which areas of your lifestyle to change to improve your arthritis symptoms.
Custom orthotics
Custom orthotics offer customized support and cushioning to address your foot care needs. They slip easily inside your shoes and take significant pressure off your tender ankle joint.
We recommend investing in custom orthotics rather than buying a pair from your local store because our process for creating orthotics guarantees a perfect fit and function.
Regenerative medicine
Dr. Aiken and our team are proud to be on the cutting edge of arthritis treatment with our suite of regenerative medicine therapies.
We offer three types of regenerative medicine: platelet-rich plasma (PRP), Amnio Fluid Flow™ injections, and stem cell therapy. Each type of regenerative medicine uses different naturally occurring substances to promote healing and cellular regeneration in damaged areas of the body.
Other advanced treatments
We also offer Erchonia® cold laser therapy and extracorporeal shockwave therapy (ESWT)
Erchonia cold laser therapy uses low-level light energy to reduce swelling and inflammation in your arthritic joint. ESWT works similarly, but instead of light energy, it uses sound waves to stimulate your body’s natural healing process.
If you're tired of walking around with ankle arthritis, we want to discuss your treatment options. Call or click to schedule an appointment with Dr. Aiken at our Dunedin, Florida, office today.
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