Painful Fashion

Fashionable Foot Pain

Foot issues are typically correctable, but the road to recovery is no walk in the park.

They say pain is beauty and this has never been truer with the type of shoes women tend to choose. If the shoe fits, wear it or if it is fashionable, but doesn’t fit well, people still wear it. Faced with the look of that latest fashion or best comfort for their feet, fashion will win almost every time. All this contributes to the downfall of one’s feet.

“Plain and simple, feet need room and that is not something fashionable shoes tend to give,” says Kipp Cryar, MD, Memorial Medical Group Orthopedic Surgeon. “It’s not something people tend to want to hear, but the less fashionable the shoe, the better it tends to be for your foot.”

Dr. Cryar is fellowship-trained in foot and ankle surgery and sees issues that arise from bad footwear. Bunions, flat foot, hammertoes and planter fasciitis are some of the most common issues.

All issues are typically correctable, but the road to recovery is no walk in the park. Recovery can take months before you are back to your normal life. The best option is to prevent the issue in the first place by being kind to your feet.

“I do suggest anytime someone comes in with a foot issue, any foot pain really, that they need to switch to something with support,” Dr. Cryar says. “Some are better at taking my advice than others.”

Bunions come about as a result of not enough room in the toe box of a particular shoe. The big toe then gets pushed into the second toe and over time, a problem can happen. Flat foot is a result of not wearing any kind of supportive shoe. It is usually brought on by genetics, but if you are not wearing a supportive shoe it can make it worse. Hammertoe is similar to bunions where your shoe cramps your toes together causing them to curl up. “Roomy shoes, arch support shoes are what I would suggest to prevent or to try to fix any sort of foot pain first,” Dr. Cryar says. “There are other techniques that get a little more complex after that. Surgery is not something we jump into, but it can become necessary to fix the problem so it doesn’t lead to other issues.”

Foot pain problems can lead to issues higher up in the body if they are not corrected, such back issues, joint issues or even affecting your gait. So, if you are having a problem, don’t wait to come it.

Dr. Cryar is taking new patients at the Orthopaedic Specialists office located on the Memorial Hospital campus. He can usually see patients the same day. To make an appointment, call 337.494.4900.