May 2017

Spring is well underway and summer is quickly approaching! This can mean a number of different things for you and your family, including flying on an airplane to your long-awaited vacation. Some folks actually enjoy the experience of flying, but for others, it can be the most dreadful part of the vacation experience.

To make your flight experience better, try this: Take care of your feet.

It’s not the first thing you think about, but foot care and related self-care on a flight can make a huge difference to your travel experience. It’s especially important on long flights, where sitting inactively for a long period of time can lead to edema (swelling) and cramping. Diabetics, pregnant women, and anyone prone to blood clots or other circulation disorders are at higher risk of edema and should pay attention to how their feet and ankles are doing during a flight.

The following are foot care and self-care tips for traveling on airplanes:

Foot-specific Care

• Wear shoes that are comfortable, breathable, and lightweight. Slip-on shoes will be great if you plan on taking your shoes off during the flight.
• On that note, make sure you have clean feet and a fresh pair of socks on – compression socks are even better to prevent swelling. If you will take your shoes off, do not be the person that inconveniences your neighbor. Additionally, it is best to reduce the chance of bacterial, fungal, and viral growth in your shoes, which is essential for foot health.
• Perform foot and ankle exercises while seated such as: pointing and flexing your feet, make circles with your feet, make windshield wiper motions with your feet, and spreading your toes out and then gripping them together.
• If you have short legs, use a bag or pillow to prop your feet. It will relieve some pressure and reduce chances of fluids pooling in your lower extremities.

Whole-body Care

• When booking a ticket, choose an aisle seat if possible. This will give you more room to stretch your legs out and give you freedom to walk up and down the plane as you please.
• Before boarding: Make sure you’re wearing comfortable clothes and shoes. If you have a sweater, it can be helpful in case it is cold on the plane. Drink water and use the bathroom. Do some full body stretches: reach to the sky on tip toes, bend over forward and back, as well as side-to-side.
• Get up and stand, move, walk whenever possible. If you’re not in the aisle seat, get out every time the person in the aisle seat gets up. This will help with overall circulation and prevent cramping.
• Pack healthy snacks/food, avoiding salty snacks. They can dehydrate you, which will increase risk of swelling. Drink plenty of fluids – which will also give you more excuses to get up and go to the bathroom.

Traveling with children? Do the same type of foot and whole body care for them. If you are worried about edema or foot care on an upcoming flight, make an appointment to come see us at Texas Foot Works. Dr. Jonathan M. Kletz can assess your feet and give you great solutions for your edema. Make an appointment today at any of our Abrams (Dallas), Athens, and Gun Barrell City, TX offices.

There are some chronic foot issues that are not easily treatable with conventional methods. Diabetic foot ulcers, plantar fasciitis, tendinitis, and arthritis are chronic problems that do not always have a quick fix or simple treatment.

Good news! There is now a treatment option, in which platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is obtained from your blood, separated and concentrated, and then injected into or applied onto the problem site. Platelets are the part of the blood that release growth factors and other necessary healing components to mend issues in the injured tissue. The goal is to use the body’s own growth factors to accelerate the healing process. This autologous blood product is safe and accepted by your body since it comes from your own body.

Procedure Information

Once you’ve been deemed a good candidate for a PRP treatment, the Autologous Conditioned Plasma (ACP) system will be used for the procedure.

·      A double syringe system is used to draw up blood, which is then placed in a centrifuge.

·      The centrifuge separates the platelets from the red blood cells

·      The platelets are then applied back into the injury or pain site.

It takes much less time to obtain the ACP in this system than it does for typical PRP systems, which can take up to 45 minutes. It is also safe since the whole process takes place in a closed system, significantly lowering risk of infection or other contamination issues.

For diabetic foot ulcers that take up a lot of time to close or won’t heal properly, another way to use PRP is to use a system that creates a gel that is applied directly over the open wound to encourage healing. 

Better Healing

The goal of the treatment is to speed up healing time or reduce pain and have you return back to normal activities sooner, especially for muscle or tendon injuries. Surgeons may also apply PRP to injuries to aid recovery after a sports injury that required surgery. In this way, PRP is not usually a standalone treatment, but instead, recommended with other rehab treatments like physical therapy and/or the use of orthotics or other devices.

Do you have chronic issues and wonder if you’re a good candidate for PRP treatment? Make an appointment to come see us at Texas Foot Works. Dr. Jonathan M. Kletz can assess your feet. Make an appointment today at any of our Abrams (Dallas), Athens, and Gun Barrell City, TX offices.

Did you know that babies are usually born with flat feet? Their chubby little feet have padding to protect them, which means that there is no arch on the bottom of the feet. But don’t fret! It’s usually a problem that begins to resolve itself as they begin to stand or walk. As their feet begin to strengthen, the tissues along the bottom of the feet begin to tighten and an arch forms.

The problem, however, occurs when the arch does not form. Then, the child has pediatric flatfoot. Depending on the severity of the issue, the child may outgrow it or it may develop into a painful problem. The flexible type of flatfoot can be treated more easily, but a rigid flatfoot issue would require more corrective treatment. Treating this early would be beneficial to the child, especially if the child experiences pain or discomfort while walking, cramping, or in-toeing.

If there is no pain, your child may grow out of it, and no treatment is necessarily required. On the other hand, if there is pain or discomfort, it is best to have feet assessed as soon as the problem is detected. Our podiatrist may suggest one of the following treatments:

• Orthotic Insert, shoes, or devices– for flexible flat feet, shoe inserts can help support the feet at the arches. Custom shoes or orthotic devices may be required to support the arches. Rigid flat feet can be affected worse by shoe inserts, so it is not recommended.
• Stretching exercises – if the flat feet are caused by tight heel cords, special stretching exercises may be required to lengthen the heel cord.
• Surgery – when no other treatments work, surgery may be required, especially in truly rigid flat feet.

Leaving painful flatfoot untreated could lead to worse problems later, such as arthritis. If your toddler seems to be complaining of pain, refuses to walk, or wants to be picked up all the time, it’s possible that they may have foot pain such as flat feet. Make and appointment to come see us at Texas Foot Works. Dr. Jonathan M. Kletz can assess your child’s feet to find the right solution for relief. Make an appointment today at any of our Abrams (Dallas), Athens, and Gun Barrell City, TX offices. 

You wake up in the morning, take your first steps out of bed, and feel pain along the bottom of your feet. You also feel the same pain after some intense exercise or sitting for a long period of time.

You’re probably suffering from plantar fasciitis. This is caused by an inflamed, overused, tired ligament network along the bottom (plantar) of the feet. These tissues connect the front of the feet to the heels. Those who overpronate, have fallen arches, or overuse the tissues from working or exercising can experience this problem.

Plantar Fasciitis Pain Relief

The following are some at-home remedies you can try to get relief from plantar fasciitis pain:

• Stretch – Before you get out of bed in the morning, sit up, flex your feet, and reach to your toes to stretch the plantar fascia and calves.
• Rest and Ice the Plantar Fascia – Overuse injury is a common cause of plantar fascia pain. Reduce activity and use ice packs or cold compresses several times throughout the day to reduce inflammation.
• Relax and Relieve Tension – A warm foot soak or foot massage can feel great for tightness along the bottom of the feet.
• NSAIDs (Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) – Over-the-counter ibuprofen or naproxen can provide pain relief and reduce inflammation.
• Orthotic inserts or shoes – These can be purchased at drugstores or pharmacies, but if specific shapes are required, it is best to get custom orthotics made by a podiatrist. The padding, arch and heel supports, and well-constructed shoes can help to stabilize feet and ankles to reduce strain on the plantar fascia.

Prescribed Treatment Options via Podiatrist:

• Physical Therapy – This can help reduce tension and strengthen the feet to prevent further pain.
• Surgery – This is a last resort for those suffering from persistent pain, where other treatments have not worked.  

Plantar fasciitis got you down? Come see us at Texas Foot Works. Dr. Jonathan M. Kletz can assess your feet to find the proper treatment for you. Make an appointment today at any of our Abrams (Dallas), Athens, and Gun Barrell City, TX offices!