Arthritis is a condition that affects many areas of the body.
It can affect hands, shoulders, legs and even feet.
Two of the most commonly affected joints by arthritis are the ankle and foot.
As you can imagine, these areas can be very painful and have a substantial effect on an affected person's ability to walk.
If you learn about the symptoms of foot arthritis however, you can know enough about the disease to receive treatment for it as soon as it is necessary.
Foot Arthritis Symptoms Foot arthritis can be identified by several symptoms.
The final outcome of the symptom however will depend on which specific joint is affected.
Here are the common symptoms: tenderness or pain in the affected area, reduced mobility and a stiffness and swelling of the foot joints.
You will also find it more difficult to move or walk.
Your Doctor's Diagnosis As soon as you start to show the symptoms of foot arthritis, you should arrange to see your doctor for his diagnosis.
Prior to beginning any treatment, your doctor will review your medical history and give you a physical.
You will have to let him know as much as you can about the pain including when it started, when it's most painful, if you've ever had any injuries in the joint and where the primary centre of pain is located.
Questions such as these will help your doctor identify the joint affected.
If your doctor cannot make a diagnosis from this information then he will likely carry out further tests which could include a gait analysis - a common test that helps show the alignment of bones in legs and feet as a patient walks.
Your feet and ankles as well as your stride can also be measured to help identify where the affected joint is.
In some cases, an X-ray may be used to show changes in the shape of a bone or the spacing between bones.
Other similar diagnosis tools are a bone scan, computed technology or MRI (magnetic resonance imaging).
Treatment of Foot Arthritis After a complete diagnosis, the next stage is treatment of the condition.
Non-surgical and surgical methods of treatment exist for foot arthritis.
Swelling can be reduced by anti-inflammatory medications or painkillers.
Support pads or inserts can be placed inside shoes to help take stress from joints to reduce pain.
Other treatment methods may also include: custom-made shoes, using an ankle-foot orthosis, using a walking stick or cane, using a brace or taking part in a low-impact physical therapy program.
Failing all of the non-surgical methods of treatment, then your doctor will have to consider surgical treatment.
Surgical treatment options include arthrodesis (fusion), arthroplasty (joint replacement) and arthroscopic debridement.
Knowing the Symptoms To make sure you catch arthritis before it starts to affect your lifestyle and quality of living, you should make yourself fully aware of the symptoms and treatments so that you can act upon them when the time comes.
It can affect hands, shoulders, legs and even feet.
Two of the most commonly affected joints by arthritis are the ankle and foot.
As you can imagine, these areas can be very painful and have a substantial effect on an affected person's ability to walk.
If you learn about the symptoms of foot arthritis however, you can know enough about the disease to receive treatment for it as soon as it is necessary.
Foot Arthritis Symptoms Foot arthritis can be identified by several symptoms.
The final outcome of the symptom however will depend on which specific joint is affected.
Here are the common symptoms: tenderness or pain in the affected area, reduced mobility and a stiffness and swelling of the foot joints.
You will also find it more difficult to move or walk.
Your Doctor's Diagnosis As soon as you start to show the symptoms of foot arthritis, you should arrange to see your doctor for his diagnosis.
Prior to beginning any treatment, your doctor will review your medical history and give you a physical.
You will have to let him know as much as you can about the pain including when it started, when it's most painful, if you've ever had any injuries in the joint and where the primary centre of pain is located.
Questions such as these will help your doctor identify the joint affected.
If your doctor cannot make a diagnosis from this information then he will likely carry out further tests which could include a gait analysis - a common test that helps show the alignment of bones in legs and feet as a patient walks.
Your feet and ankles as well as your stride can also be measured to help identify where the affected joint is.
In some cases, an X-ray may be used to show changes in the shape of a bone or the spacing between bones.
Other similar diagnosis tools are a bone scan, computed technology or MRI (magnetic resonance imaging).
Treatment of Foot Arthritis After a complete diagnosis, the next stage is treatment of the condition.
Non-surgical and surgical methods of treatment exist for foot arthritis.
Swelling can be reduced by anti-inflammatory medications or painkillers.
Support pads or inserts can be placed inside shoes to help take stress from joints to reduce pain.
Other treatment methods may also include: custom-made shoes, using an ankle-foot orthosis, using a walking stick or cane, using a brace or taking part in a low-impact physical therapy program.
Failing all of the non-surgical methods of treatment, then your doctor will have to consider surgical treatment.
Surgical treatment options include arthrodesis (fusion), arthroplasty (joint replacement) and arthroscopic debridement.
Knowing the Symptoms To make sure you catch arthritis before it starts to affect your lifestyle and quality of living, you should make yourself fully aware of the symptoms and treatments so that you can act upon them when the time comes.
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