Are you struggling with persistent foot pain? While foot pain often stems from an injury, it can also be a sign of arthritis. At Equilibrium, we offer several physiotherapy treatments that can help with foot pain and arthritis.
Arthritis is a general term for over a hundred conditions that cause inflammation and joint pain. Many types of arthritis can develop in the foot or ankle, including two of the most common: rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis.
If your foot pain isn’t resolving independently, it may be time to schedule an appointment with the team at Equilibrium. We can help determine the cause, including whether or not it’s stemming from arthritis. But more importantly, we offer several interventions to help manage foot pain and arthritis.
Call us at our Victoria clinic today to get started.
Understanding Arthritis and Foot Pain
Osteoarthritis
Osteoarthritis is the most common form of arthritis in the world. It currently affects around 13% of Canadians. It’s primarily associated with aging, developing when the cartilage in your joints degenerates and can no longer protect the bones.
While we most frequently hear about hip or knee osteoarthritis, it can occur in any joint in the body, including your feet and ankles. Osteoarthritis pain develops gradually, and you’ll experience joint stiffness as well as joint pain.
Rheumatoid Arthritis
Rheumatoid arthritis is the second most common form of arthritis in the world. Unlike osteoarthritis, it’s an autoimmune disease in which the body attacks the lining of your joints, leading to pain, inflammation, and possible deformity.
Rheumatoid arthritis often starts in the small joints of your hands, feet, and ankles before spreading to larger joints. One of the hallmarks of rheumatoid arthritis (as opposed to osteoarthritis) is that it’s symmetrical, meaning you’ll experience it in both feet, not just one.
Arthritis of any type does not have a cure. But physiotherapy can help you manage your symptoms so you can stay active and healthy.
Physiotherapy, Foot Pain, and Arthritis: What To Expect
Arthritis management always begins with conservative interventions like physiotherapy. While it may seem counterintuitive,regular movement and exercis are some of the best ways to manage arthritis-related foot pain–you’ll just need to find the right movements for your needs. That’s something our physiotherapists can help you do.
That said, we can also offer acute pain management. This helps control pain levels so you can begin exercising regularly. Some of the techniques we might suggest for managing foot pain and arthritis symptoms include the following:
- Manual therapy techniques, such as soft tissue manipulation or careful mobilization of your foot and ankle
- Pain-relieving modalities, such as hot or cold therapy
- Acupuncture
In addition to these techniques, we’ll show you specialized exercises to strengthen the muscles in your foot and ankle, which help support the joints and can make general exercise and everyday movements a little easier. We can also guide you through activity modification. Regular exercise can minimize discomfort and slow the progression of your symptoms.
Finally, because foot arthritis can affect your balance and gain, we’ll also work with you on targeted exercises to improve your walking patterns and reduce your fall risk.
Get Started with Foot Pain and Arthritis Relief Today!
At Equilibrium, we want you to know that you can absolutely take a proactive approach to managing your arthritis symptoms! Schedule an appointment at our Victoria clinic for your initial consultation.
