Ankle And Foot Pain Treatment: Chiropractic Care & PEMF Therapy
Can chiropractors help with ankle and foot pain? Chiropractic adjustments can be performed on many different joints, including the ankle and foot.
While chiropractors do focus on the spine, many are trained in adjusting the extremities (arms and legs) as well as the TMJ joint (jaw). Anywhere two bones meet is a joint that can potentially go out of alignment and need to be adjusted.
The ankle is a fairly simple joint and patients respond well to the typical ankle adjustment. In our office, the adjustment is something like pulling on your foot in a specific way to get the ankle joint to move. The relief can be immediate.
However, this is not a treatment for a sprained ankle, when ligaments are already stretched and torn. During the initial examination, we'll determine if your ankle pain is due to a sprain or tear. Typically, we wouldn't adjust a new injury. Most patients in our office that mention ankle pain have had it for some time (like months or years) and just aren't sure what else to do. They will describe the ankle as feeling "jammed" or "pinching" when they move it.
Foot pain is another story all together. The foot has a lot of little joints and can go back out of alignment as soon as you start walking on it again, due to the increased pressure from your body weight. Since the joints are small, they can shift back out of place easily.
While a nerve irritation or compression in your low back can lead to foot pain, this is most often not the case. Foot pain that's chronic in nature should really be evaluated by a podiatrist for better results. We can help you assess if our office is the right place for you, but visiting a podiatrist for this problem is usually a better first step.
Over the years, we have developed more techniques and treatments to be as helpful as possible for ankle and foot pain, especially for our athletic patients that are trying to get back into the action as fast as possible.
Services That Work Best For This Condition
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Treatments For Ankle And Foot Pain
Chiropractic Care
Chiropractic adjustments to the spine are helpful, but adjustments to the pelvis, foot, and ankle can make a bigger difference. Most patients don't even realize we can adjust more than the spine. X-rays may be needed for evaluation if a stress fracture is suspected, but many patients see relief following that first "pop" moving the joint back into place.
If you twist your ankle, how do you "untwist" it? The ankle joint in particular can be moved back into proper position and provide a lot of relief and allow for a return to normal activities.
PEMF Therapy
Still in pain? Had the problem for a long time? PEMF therapy works wonders to enhance the healing process. The treatment is comfortable and we can focus the magnetic field directly on the area of pain to provide additional healing and relief.
Custom Orthotics
If you find your ankle and foot pain keeps returning, the problem may be in how you walk or run. You can try to change your running style, but that's a challenge that most people don't want to do. Adding in custom orthotics will help hold your foot in the proper position and keep you from undoing all of your treatment following your visit.
Exercises For Ankle And Foot Pain
You can see quite a bit of change by adding in exercises that will improve foot and ankle strength and mobility. Some people aren't sure where to start, so we've compiled our own list of recommended exercises. Adding in the right exercises along with chiropractic care and PEMF therapy can produce results that don't require drugs or surgery. Our goal is always to get you out of pain, but to also help you achieve lasting results.
Ankle And Foot Pain Due To Leg Length Discrepancy?
Often overlooked is the possibility of a leg length discrepancy. This means that one leg is anatomically shorter than the other leg, causing you to place increased pressure on one foot over the other (usually on the shorter side). This compensation can lead to a lot of different problems, including back pain and knee pain. It can also cause the way you walk and run to be compromised, increasing the strain on the ankle and foot.
Over time, the difference in leg length will wear down one side over the other. A leg length x-ray can be performed in our office, which will measure the bones of the leg down to the millimeter. Depending on the difference from side to side, we can provide a small heel lift to make up the difference and restore balance.
The reason this is often overlooked is due to the small difference. When measured, most patients are 3 - 5 mm off. This is not enough to be noticed with the naked eye. This requires an x-ray to get the full picture as to what is happening with the legs and spine. Reviewing for leg length discrepancy is part of our initial examination process and one that we will consider for your ankle and foot pain.
Having ankle and foot pain doesn’t mean you are doomed to a life of pain.
Let CORE Chiropractic help you get back on track with personalized chiropractic care, PEMF therapy, home exercises and stretches, and a custom treatment plan. Call today for your consultation, or schedule an appointment online.