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Plantar Fasciitis

Plantar Fasciitis Treatment

Foot pain, , , , ,

Plantar Fasciitis Treatment with MIST Ultrasound

There are many treatments available for plantar fasciitis, that causes heel pain. Heel pain results primarily from repetitive stress, such as with long-distance running, ballet, or jumping. It can also occur with structural issues that affect the bones and soft tissues. Several different conditions can cause such pain.

The most common reason for heel pain, plantar fasciitis is the inflammation of the plantar fascia, a tough band of tissue extending from the heel bone to the tip of the foot. If the tissue stretches beyond its normal limits, the fibers become inflamed, causing pain. While you most often feel the pain in the heel bone, it can present in the middle of the foot as well.
Special exercises and physical therapy have proved helpful. New MIST treatment that provides relief and promotes healing for patients who suffer from chronic plantar fasciitis pain available at Chicago Home Foot Care.

European Foot and Ankle Clinic offers MIST Ultrasound Wounds Healing Therapy, a new technology that efficiently and simultaneously addresses pain, inflammation, and edema.

Low-intensity ultrasound (LIUS) was shown to be beneficial in mitigating inflammation and facilitating tissue repair in various pathologies.

European Foot and Ankle Clinic already successfully treated multiple chronic wounds with MIST therapy,

please call us to schedule yours by calling:  773-205-0106

Read more about MIST Therapy here: MIST Ultrasound Therapy

Morton's Neuroma

Morton’s Neuroma

Foot pain, , ,

Morton’s Neuroma

Morton’s neuroma is a painful condition that impacts the ball of your foot.

Neuromas are thickenings of nerve tissue that are the result of compression and irritation of the nerve. This compression creates swelling and enlargement of the nerve, which can lead to permanent nerve damage if left untreated. A neuroma can occur anywhere in the body. The most common type of podiatric neuroma is a Morton’s neuroma. Most commonly, a neuroma is the condition where the nerve between the two toes inward from your pinky toe that becomes irritated and enlarged. Since our nerves allow us to process and feel pain, you can imagine how an enlarged nerve trapped between two solid bones would be a painful experience. Neuromas can be so painful that some people wind up visiting urgent or emergency care centers thinking that they have broken their foot! Sometimes this isn’t far from the truth, either.

What Causes Morton’s Neuroma?

Morton’s neuroma can develop when you overwork your digital nerve. Common causes of the foot condition include:

  • Wearing high heels
  • Wearing tight shoes or shoes with a narrow toe box
  • Doing sports that involve constant repeated flexion of the ball of the foot, such as running

 

Some neuromas respond well to conservative treatment options aimed at reducing the pressure and irritation around the nerve so inflammation and pain can resolve. Often, switching to footwear that fits properly can provide significant relief of symptoms while also reducing the pressure that causes nerve inflammation. Avoiding high heels is also important since the sloped shape of the shoe can significantly increase pressure on the ball of the foot where neuromas are most likely to occur.

Our podiatrists use advanced and innovative European neurolitic dehydrated alcohol injections to shrink neuromas and provide long-term , non-surgical solutions wherever possible.

Custom orthotics and Gel silicon toe cups ( latter currently available ONLY at our mobile services ) can be very effective in helping relieve pressure on nerve tissue so pain and inflammation can resolve. Pain medications including both oral medicines and injected solutions such as European homeopathic as well as Dehydrated Alcohol, Plasma PRP or Steroids can also be effective in providing immediate relief for symptoms, including both pain and inflammation. Other techniques like extracorporeal shockwave therapy can also be effective in treating neuromas and relieving symptoms. When surgery is necessary, the doctors use minimal incision/no scar surgeries to improve recovery time and reduce the risk of scarring.

Call to make an appointment: 773-205-0106

Read more: https://europeanfootandankleclinic.com/service/neuroma

toenail fungus

How to Treat Toenail Fungus

Toenail Fungus, , , ,

Toenail Fungus

Toenail fungus infections often start as athlete’s foot, a skin infection, before spreading to the toenails, although they can also occur on just the nails. Symptoms of toenail fungus include changes in the texture, color, and shape of the nail. The nail may become crumbly, brittle, or thickened and develop yellow, white, or brown spots. In more severe cases, the nail can change shape, separate from the nail bed, emit a foul odor, and make wearing shoes uncomfortable.

Have you noticed a yellow discoloration in one or more of your toenails? Is the toenail thicker and harder to trim than usual?  Is the nail starting to thicken, making it uncomfortable to wear your everyday shoes? If so, then you could be dealing with a nail fungus. Toenail fungus develops when the toenails have been in moist or wet environments and did not receive proper care afterward. For instance, areas such as communal showers can often be a breeding ground for fungus. Because of this, athletes can be more prone to developing fungal toenails. This is a common problem that occurs more often in older adults. Nail fungus isn’t just a cosmetic problem and can result in lasting issues for the affected toenails without the right treatment.

How to Treat Toenail Fungus

Laser treatments have shown to be more successful than topical ointments and can clear the infection without damaging the healing tissue. For minor cases, creams and topical medications are used to treat fungal nails. However, when the condition is a bit more serious, oral medications are used because they have proven to be very effective.

Laser for fungal toenail is a pain free and fast procedure, to treat any type of fungus infection in your nail. This technique uses laser light to penetrate and vaporize nail bed and special frequency kills only infected cells, with this method there’s no down time and it does not affect your everyday life. Unfortunately all Illinois insurance providers seeing Nail Fungus Laser treatment as a cosmetic procedure , this service can only be provided for private payers.

It can take six months or longer to start seeing clear nail growth after proper treatment.

Call to make an appointment: 773-205-0106

Read more: https://europeanfootandankleclinic.com/service/nail-fungus

heel pain laser

Laser for Chronic Foot Pain

Foot pain, , , , , ,

MLS Laser Treatments for Foot Pain

Chronic heel pain is one of the most common forms of foot pain in adults. Most of heel pain is caused by plantar fasciitis.  Low level laser therapy (LLLT) offers a quick, painless, non-invasive, side-effect free alternative to relieve the debilitating pain of plantar fasciitis.

Low level laser therapy accelerates the body’s natural healing process by energizing the biochemical responses within our cells.

Low-level laser therapy has been found to be effective in numerous medical conditions and associated symptoms. Regardless of the condition for which it is used, LLLT has pain-relieving and anti-inflammatory properties, it helps with edema and promotes faster healing.

It has been demonstrated that this therapeutic solution could relieve short-term pain in multiple acute and chronic conditions such as rheumatic disorders, neck pain, chronic joint disorders,  tendinopathy.

Five common foot ailments:

Arthritis

MLS can reduce swelling and increase your range of motion and mobility for rheumatoid arthritis, gout, osteoarthritis, or post-traumatic arthritis, the constant pain and stiffness in your feet can make it hard to walk.

Foot neuromas

MLS stops the pain of diabetic feet and foot neuromas, it can help heal the tissue that’s causing the pain.

Plantar fasciitis

MLS laser can help if you have a plantar fasciitis.

Tendonitis

MLS targets that inflammation and stops the discomfort so you can get moving again.

Sprains/strains

Some of the most common foot and ankle injuries are sprains and strains.  MLS helps to ease the pain and help the tissues regenerate and heal.

Call to schedule an appointment for any our Chicago podiatry offices: 773-205-0106

MIS bunion

Minimally Invasive Bunion Surgery

bunions, , , , , , , ,

Minimally Invasive Bunion Surgery

A bunion is an enlargement of the bone or tissue around a joint at the base of the big toe or at the base of the little toe. Bunions often form when the joint is stressed over a prolonged period. Bunions can be painful and make daily activities a challenge, as they can cause irritation, swelling and stiffness in the toe joints over time.

Modern minimally invasive bunion surgery allows smaller incisions and facilitates easier recovery for patients. Modern advances in minimally invasive bunion surgery techniques and technology have allowed for tiny incisions, a walking recovery, less postoperative pain, shorter operative time and an overall easier recovery.

With this technique, there is no need to open the joints which spare blood supply to the bones, so patients don’t have inner and external scar tissue as they would with traditional bunion surgery. This means a reduced time in physical therapy and less need for the painful break-up of scar tissue in the big toe joint.

Benefits of minimally invasive bunion surgery include improvement in deformity, pain and overall clinical appearance. Minimally Invasive Bunion Correction Surgery can relieve your pain, correct any related foot deformity, and help you resume your normal activities.

 

Call to schedule an appointment for any our Chicago podiatry offices: 773-205-0106

Lear more: https://europeanfootandankleclinic.com/service/minimally-invasive-bunion-surgery-treatment

 

 

Ingrown Toenails

Ingrown Toenails

Foot pain, , , ,

Ingrown Toenails

Ingrown toenails are a common foot problem. They develop when the edge of your toenail grows into the skin of your toe, and they’re often painful. Ingrown toenails can cause minor discomfort or terrible pain, depending on how much they have grown. For many lucky people, an ingrown nail will resolve by itself, without any treatment.

An ingrown toenail can be as a result of one or more of the following reasons:

Constant stress to the toes: This can occur with athletes who kick things all the time. It is also common with people who do ballet and people who wear shoes that pinch their toes

Trauma to the toe: A stubbed toe can develop an ingrown nail. Dropping a heavy object on a toe can also result in an ingrown nail

Cutting the toenails the wrong way: Toenails should be cut straight across. Trying to round the toenail at the corners can cause it to grow into the folds of the toes

Thickened toenails: Some people have naturally thick nails. So do many older people. Thick toenails are more likely to become ingrown

A hereditary trait: Some people have a genetic trait (like nails that fan sideways) that causes their toenails to become ingrown

How is an ingrown toenail treated?

Minor ingrown toenails can heal on their own as the nail grows out. However, severe or infected ingrown nails require professional medical care.

It’s important to learn the signs of an ingrown nail infection so you know when it’s time to visit a foot doctor. If you have an ingrown toenail, you can experience one, many, or all of these symptoms:

  • Drainage, like blood or pus
  • Significant swelling
  • Warmth
  • Worsening pain
  • Toe pain and sensitivity where your toenail and skin meet
  • Swelling of the skin that surrounds your nail
  • Redness
  • Signs of infection, such as bleeding and pus drainage

If your nail is infected, it won’t heal on its own. The only way to treat the infection and prevent painful complications is to visit a podiatrist from European Foot & Ankle Clinic  for ingrown nail care. There are options when it comes to treating ingrown toenails.

Call Chicago podiatrists to schedule an appointment for ingrown toenails: 773-205-0106 

WOUNDS HEALING THERAPY

Ultrasound MIST Therapy

Foot pain, , , , , ,

MIST Ultrasound Wounds Healing

The European Foot & Ankle Clinic is proudly offering  to our diabetic and non-diabetic patients suffering with difficult lesions, ulcers, tumors, wounds on their feet MIST Ultrasound Wounds Healing Therapy.

MIST Therapy uses low-frequency ultrasound treatment method used in wound care. The ultrasound waves are transmitted to the tissues by a mist generated by placing saline in front of the transducer of the ultrasound machine. In addition, MIST Therapy is effective in removing or debriding no-viable tissues on the wound, reducing infection and speeding up closure and healing.

High levels of bacteria cause delayed wound healing. Using ultrasonic mist therapy helps control and promote healing by causing mechanical stress which leads to bacterial cell death and reduction of bacterial count.

Biofilm is a structured community of bacteria tightly enclosed within a self-produced exopolymeric matrix, and its presence is a significant barrier to healing. Since it is metabolically inactive, it is extremely hard to disrupt with topical/ systemic antibiotics, antimicrobials, and/or antiseptics. Ultrasonic mist therapy is very effective in disrupting biofilm to promote wound healing.

For information on wound care and wound prevention, we recommend you speak with a podiatrist for professional care and advice.

Call to schedule and appointment: 773-205-0106

Learn more about MIST Ultrasound Wounds Healing

Minimally Invasive Bunion Surgery

What Is Minimally Invasive Foot Surgery?

bunions, , , , , , , ,

What Is Minimally Invasive Foot Surgery?

Traditional foot and ankle surgical techniques involve large incisions, extensive dissection inside the foot or ankle, and internal devices such as pins and screws to correct foot aa variety of problems. Such procedures often involve significant recovery time, pain and discomfort, and the disruption of soft tissue inside the body. Simply put, traditional surgery is not a walk in the park.

Minimally invasive surgery (MIS), however, reduces or eliminates many of these unwelcome aspects of traditional surgery. MIS involves the use of specially designed surgical instruments and devices, along with an advanced imaging system called a fluoroscope, to see inside the body without having to make large incisions. Surgeons perform their procedures through extremely small ‘key-hole’ incisions in the foot or ankle.

Minimally invasive foot and ankle surgery uses smaller incisions, usually 2-3 millimeters long, to allow for faster recovery while effectively correcting deformities. This is a highly skilled technique that requires advanced foot and ankle training, specialized equipment and has been validated by many foot and ankle experts over the past 30 years.

Minimally invasive bunionectomy involves less pain, a faster recovery, and better cosmetic results due to the small incisions. Open surgery, however, is used if implant placement in the distracted joint is necessary, it’s a more powerful correction for very severe bunion deformities. 

European Foot and Ankle Clinic is one of the pioneers in performing MIS techniques in successful correcting foot deformities. This advanced technique is utilized here by Dr Goshko and Dr Podolskiy since 2013. 

Call to schedule an appointment:  773-205-0106

Read more at: https://europeanfootandankleclinic.com/service/minimally-invasive-bunion-surgery-treatment

We welcome patients from all over Chicago & Hammond IN including: 46320, 46324, 46323, 46406, 46404, 46312, 46327, 46321, 46402, 46408, 46409, 46403, 46405, 46375, 46311, 46373, 46373, 46303, 46304, 46301, 46307, 60657, 60638, 60614, 60622, 60645, 60639, 60630, 60634, 60532, 60525, 60527, 60558, 60559, 60555, 60554, 60552, 60455, 60457, 60549, 60805, 60803, 60623, 60629, 60622, 60625, 60629, 60620, 60623, 60651, 60639, 60641, 60618, 60610, 60614, 60613, 60611, 60304, 60305, 60301, 60302, 60303, 60316, 60607,60201, 60290, 60640, 60630, 60659, 60654, 60656, 60641, 60640, 60642, 60645, 60647, 60171, 60707, 60656, 60631, 60614, 60625, 60629, 60659, 60660, 60613, 60657, 60618, 60622, 60610, 60068.

hammertoes

What is Hammertoe

Hammertoes, , , , , ,

What is a Hammertoe?

Wearing shoes that fit your feet and are comfortable can avoid many problems. Hammertoes are one such problem that can develop from wearing shoes that have pointy toes, are too tight, or that otherwise put pressure on your toes. The second and third toes are the most likely toes to be affected. Hammertoes get their name because the middle joint of the toe gets stuck in an upward bent position, creating a deformity resembling a hammer.  Many times, a person with hammertoe also suffers from corns, blisters, or calluses on the top of the hammertoe because of its excessive rubbing against a shoe.

Hammertoe might affect one toe or several. It can quickly cause additional complications when the toe or toes rub against your shoes, so it’s critical that you see a podiatrist right away. If you’ve tried conservative treatments but still suffer discomfort, it may be time to discuss surgical options for hammertoe.

Your toes contain 28 joints that connect your toe bones to the tendons, muscles, and ligaments that help you move. If the muscles in your toes weaken, these joints and structures in your feet experience an increase in pressure.

Your risk of developing hammertoes increases with age including:

  • Being female
  • Having a long second toe (longer than your big toe)
  • Having certain diseases, like diabetes or arthritis
  • Experiencing trauma or injury to your toe
  • Have a family history of hammertoe

Regularly wearing certain shoes, like high heels or shoes with a narrow toe box, can also increase your risk of getting hammertoes.

For patients with severe hammertoe, hammertoe surgery  may be recommend.

Our doctors utilize hidden MINIMAL INCISION APPROACH when performing surgery. They realize that Aesthetics is just as important in addition to comfort and structural realignment of bunion deformities.

If you have any symptoms of hammertoes call us: 773-205-0106

We welcome patients from all over Chicago & Hammond IN including: 46320, 46324, 46323, 46406, 46404, 46312, 46327, 46321, 46402, 46408, 46409, 46403, 46405, 46375, 46311, 46373, 46373, 46303, 46304, 46301, 46307, 60657, 60638, 60614, 60622, 60645, 60639, 60630, 60634, 60532, 60525, 60527, 60558, 60559, 60555, 60554, 60552, 60455, 60457, 60549, 60805, 60803, 60623, 60629, 60622, 60625, 60629, 60620, 60623, 60651, 60639, 60641, 60618, 60610, 60614, 60613, 60611, 60304, 60305, 60301, 60302, 60303, 60316, 60607,60201, 60290, 60640, 60630, 60659, 60654, 60656, 60641, 60640, 60642, 60645, 60647, 60171, 60707, 60656, 60631, 60614, 60625, 60629, 60659, 60660, 60613, 60657, 60618, 60622, 60610, 60068

bunion surgery

Bunions

bunions, , , , ,

BUNIONS

What Are Bunions?

A bunion (hallux valgus) is often described as a bump on the side of the big toe. Bunions can be caused by multiple reasons that include genetics, foot structure, an imbalance in foot muscles and narrow shoes. A bunion is a foot deformity that typically occurs at the joint where the big toe meets the rest of the foot. While this lump is the most noticeable symptom of a bunion, the condition is a result of a shift in the bony framework in the front of a person’s foot.

What Are the Symptoms of a Bunion?

  • Pain in the outer base of the big toe
  • A noticeable bump along the big toe joint
  • Redness around the big toe
  • Burning sensation on the side of the big toe
  • Inability to move the big toe
  • Swelling in the big toe
  • Big toe pain that worsens over time
  • Big toe pain that worsens with tight shoes or high heels

If your bunion isn’t already painful, it likely will become painful after a period of time. If it’s already causing you discomfort, that pain may worsen over time. Chronic pain can impact you physically as well as mentally, so it’s important to get the treatment you need to prevent it.

Who Might Get a Bunion?

Up to 1 in 3 Americans have bunions. The foot problem is more common in older adults, especially women. Bunions can form on one or both feet.

Bunions Treatments

Two main options are available to actively treat bunion: Medications and surgery.

Medication

Medication can help with pain and swelling.

  • Pain-relieving medications: Ibuprofen, for example, can reduce pain and swelling. They are available over-the-counter.
  • Cortisone injections: These can relieve swelling, particularly in the fluid-filled pads that cushion the bones. A doctor will advise about these.

Surgery

Some people with bunions may need surgery.

Depending on the size of the enlargement, misalignment of the toe, and pain experienced, conservative treatments may not be adequate to prevent progressive damage from bunions. In these cases, bunion surgery, known as a bunionectomy, may be advised to remove the bunion and realign the toe. Our doctors utilize hidden MINIMAL INCISION APPROACH when performing surgery. They realize that Aesthetics is just as important in addition to comfort and structural realignment of bunion deformities.

Some conservative treatments often include switching to wider footwear to accommodate the size of the bunion can bring relief, wearing silicone bunion shields, use bunion pads or orthotics (shoe inserts).

If you have pain when you’re walking in flat shoes that should feel comfortable, make an appointment with a podiatrist : 773-205-0106. It could be a bunion or some other problem. Your doctor will look at your foot. They may want to take an X-ray to decide how best to treat your bunion.