Saving your feet, one sole at a time!
Our foot clinic delivers the most consistent, professional & personalized one-on-one foot and ankle care in Mississauga and the Greater Toronto area. Every chiropodist treatment at Sole Step Family Foot Care & Orthotic Clinic is tailored to meet YOUR needs.
In addition to foot and ankle treatment, we also offer a wide range of products including custom orthotics and compression socks. When it comes to foot care, our motto is “Saving your feet, one sole at a time”.
Our feet are the core foundation of our body, as they provide us with the mobility to a lead a healthy lifestyle. Since we are constantly walking, running and moving around, our feet deal with a lot of pressure.
Custom made orthotics are shoe inserts that are designed to cater to your specific needs and health issues. Through redistributing the pressure on the foot, orthotics work to alleviate pain, provide alignment and prevent health problems, while also providing the support that is required.
Custom made orthotics are truly unique to fit the patient. They are made through taking a plaster mold of the foot. Depending on the patient’s needs, they can be designed to be thick, thin, hard or soft. Can be placed into safety, running or dress shoes.
How do you know if you need orthotics?
Custom made orthotics are a great idea for anyone who is experiencing symptoms of pain or need that support for optimal health. They also can help to prevent future health problems in regards to your joints, legs and back.
Custom made orthotics
Do you have any of the following problems? If so, custom made orthotics may help you.
Fungus can infect the nails and cause damage to the nail. It often can appear as discoloured and thickened. White, crumbly. Treatment is needed to get rid of the fungus and to restore nail health.
A lot of factors can affect healing. Certain conditions can impede healing and can take longer to heal. Conditions such as alcoholism, poor nutrition, uncontrolled levels of diabetes, anemia, etc.
Try your best to avoid wearing narrow/ill-fitting shoes.
Being diabetic, it is important to have proper foot health. Extra care needs to be taken to avoid infection from occurring or further progression of symptoms.
Try to cut nails straight across. Avoid digging into corners and not to cut the nail too short
It is very important for children to wear proper fitting shoes. The bones are still developing and can continue to grow up to age 12/13. Make sure to measure both feet and to make sure sizing is fit to the larger foot. Make sure the there is room between the longest toe (sometimes it is not the big toe) and the shoe. There should be a finger space of room from the tip of the shoe. Ensure your child stands up in the shoes, laces tied and goes for a walk in the shoes.
It is important to wear comfortable, proper fitting shoes. The wear pattern on the bottom of your shoes can tell you a lot about how your feet work and what it may indicate in terms of foot health. It can also tell your chiropodist what your gait pattern typically is and what can be done to improve the function of your feet.
Excessive wear on outside of shoe – supinated foot from pes cavus, weakness of evertor muscles such as peroneal in peroneal muscular atrophy
Excessive wear on inside side of the shoe– a lot of pronation
Wear underneath the big toe – can indicate hallux limitus or rigidus ( big toe isn’t able to move effectively.
A lot of wear at the tip of shoe – can indicate muscle weakness, neurological health issues affecting dorsiflexors, drop foot, spastic flat foot
It is important for you to have some room in your shoes. The inside of your shoe should be 1cm longer than the foot to allow space and movement.
Ingrown nails is a common problem and can be caused by various factors such as ill-fitting shoes, improper cutting and can be genetic based. Most commonly seen in the big toes, but can occur on any toe. As the nail grows out, depending on the curvature of the nail it can pierce the skin and cause some pain, swelling, redness and possible infection. It is important to remove the splinter or penetrating nail to allow healing to occur. If left untreated, it can cause an increase in pain, further problems and possibly infection. Long term solution of a recurring ingrown nail can be a partial nail avulsion which is a procedure that removes problematic portion of the nail.
Fungus infections can occur in the nails and the feet. Some nail changes that can occur are: thickening of the nail, discolouration, crumbling of the nail, odour and detachment of nail from nail bed.
For proper diagnosis and treatment, it is advised to cut a sample of the possible fungal nail and send it to the lab testing. The result will tell you if it is fungus or not and what type of fungus it is.
The most common fungal foot infection is known as tinea pedis also known as athlete’s foot. It is commonly seen in between the 4th and 5th toes and can appear soggy, white and softened.
Our skin can tell us a lot about our health. It is important to not only look at our skin, but to also touch and assess. Here are some things to look for.
Temperature – is it cool or hot? Can indicate a possible circulation problem or infection.
Colour – colour changes can be associated with cyanosis, jaundice, gangrene,etc.
Humidity – Is it extremely dry? Sweaty? (dryness can be associated with hypothyroidism)
Hair – is there an absence of hair, distribution of hair
Skin quality – eczema, psoriasis, corns, callus formation, shiny, rough, ulcers, fissures, discharge, pus
Smell?
Tender to touch?
Fissures can appear as dry or moist cracks in the skin. Moist fissures are usually found in between the toes whereas dry fissures are found in areas of high stress such as the heels. Fissures can be painful and in some cases cause pain upon walking. It is also possible that a bacterial infection can complicate the closing of the fissures and one should seek professional help.
Warts are caused by a viral infection. It often gets confused with corns and calluses. It is common for them to appear on the bottom of the foot and toes. It causes an increased cell growth and can make it painful to walk. Warts can appear at any age and is very common amongst children. It can be easily picked up in changing rooms, the decks of swimming pools, and other barefoot environments. If it is left untreated, it can get bigger and possibly spread. There are different types of treatment available suitable for you. Come in for an assessment and see what’s best for you.
Callus is a thickening of the skin. It can be hard, discoloured and can provide discomfort or pain. It can occur as a result of mechanical stresses placed on the foot from the ground.
There are different types of corns and can present on different areas of the foot. Some corns can be found in between the toes, in areas of high load/pressure and over bony areas. It can cause pain and may hurt on direct pressure. People often describe the feeling of a pebble in their shoe or a sharp pain that may make it hard to walk.
Corns and calluses can be a predisposition to ulceration and need to be managed. They require removal for maintaining normal skin integrity and reducing any pain. Some offloading measures may be taken to reduce the tissue load. Orthotics are a great way to redistribute the mechanical stresses and in managing pain.
Caused by a fungal infection of the skin. It can appear between the toes, arch area or other areas usually on the soles of the feet. Common symptoms can be scaly skin, itchiness, burning and/or redness. Fungus tends to stay in warm and moist environments.
Treatment – clean and dry socks, air drying your shoes, wear shoes/sandals on deck areas of swimming pools public changing rooms.
A very common problem, usually is found to be as tenderness on the bottom of the foot in the heel area. It can extend out to the arch area or stay localized in the heel. Most people find it painful first thing in the morning or when getting up after sitting for a long period of time. As the day passes by, it often starts to feel better after basic activity.
Causes – There can be various reasons as to the cause of plantar fasciitis. The plantar fascia becomes strained and can cause inflammation in the heel area.
Treatment – There are various modes of treatment available. Physical therapy, anti-inflammatory medication, custom made orthotics, massage therapy, taping, shockwave therapy.