Trainer Trouble…
Trainer trouble! I wanted to share a patient story with you that is quite common around this time of year. Clive came to see us at the clinic a few weeks back he had been training for the Virgin London Marathon and had developed shin pain (shin splints or as now called Medial tibial stress syndrome). He had attended the marathon exhibition the week before and after undergoing a video gait analysis by a well known sports company was advised that he had over pronation and was to ditch his Mizunos trainers and buy their product (and get a second pair for free!). There was no repeat video in his sparkling new trainers instead he was sent on his way a few pounds lighter after being told they would fix his problem. On attending our clinic he felt the...
Read MoreAchilles pain – Tendonosis or tendonitis?
From the physio couch – Achilles Tendonosis In the clinic we tend to see Achilles problems on a regular basis. Quite often people are coming to us after many months of pain despite various treatments and interventions. This week I (Dan) was interviewed for an online website one of the topics discussed was Achilles Tendonosis. With the marathon season upon us I thought I would share the transcript with you. 1. What is the Achilles Tendon and what does it do? The Achilles tendon essentially connects the calf muscles Gastrocneimus and Soleus to the heel bone. When the calf muscles contract the tendon points the foot down and pushes the heel and foot off the ground. A good example of this occurs when we stand on our tip toes. 2. What is Achilles Tendonosis? A chronic (long standing) condition...
Read MorePlantar fasciitis and heel pain
A pain in the heel! Policeman’s heel or plantar fasciitis are the two most common names used for pain located in the heel. There are however several different causes of this condition that affects many of us through our life time. The most common is inflammation and subsequent wearing of the plantar fascia (a band of strong soft tissue connecting the heel bone to the toes) attachment to the heel bone, initially this is referred to as plantar fasciitis but with subsequent degeneration becomes plantar fasciosis. The second most common cause is inflammation of the bursa that covers the heel. This small sac of fluid can become swollen and painful and mimic plantar fasciitis. Other causes of heel pain include nerve irritation, osteoarthritis of the above ankle joints, severs disease and stress fractures. Ian Griffiths (Podiatrist) and Sharon Mumford...
Read MoreOlympic Podiatrist
An honour and a privilege! Two years ago while having lunch in our staff room my colleague and Podiatrist Ian Griffiths casually said” I am thinking of volunteering to work at the London Olympic Games”. After coming through a stringent interview process he was selected ahead of some other very experienced candidates. Last week and 2 years on I caught up with him to find out what it was like. How did you get selected to work at the Olympics? It was a fairly long process, with the initial application form being completed and submitted back in 2010. Then I had to attend an interview held at the Excel centre in 2011. I found out I had been successful (one of 10 podiatrists chosen from all applicants) and had 3 full days of mandatory training to attend throughout the...
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