At Doncaster Foot Clinic, we’re obviously of the opinion that any and all lower limb pain, discomfort or abnormality should be cared for by professionals like ourselves. You only get one set of legs and feet after all! Foot and leg health can often be ignored until the problem becomes significant – and usually only when pain or discomfort becomes so big you can’t function in your daily life. Usually, a visit to a Podiatrist sooner rather than later would result in less pain and an easier (and cheaper) fix. So what should you categorically NEVER ignore?
Constant Pain
This is an obvious one. Lower limb pain can come and go, especially as you age. And it’s normal for legs and feet to be sore after you’ve been on your feet all week. But ongoing pain, that you can’t attribute to a specific trigger, should never be ignored. At Doncaster Foot Clinic, our team of Podiatrist’s can assess your feet & your footwear to help form a diagnosis for what the problem is. From there we can treat the underlying pain and help manage the problem going forward!
Ingrown Toenails
This is quite a common one that we see in clinic. “I’ve had this painful ingrown toenail for weeks and weeks – and I’ve tried to sort it myself and made it worse”
First of all, NEVER attempt to deal with an ingrown toenail yourself. You wouldn’t perform any other ‘surgery’ on yourself so please don’t hack at your toenail. Ingrown toenails can cause redness, swelling & pus around the site – ultimately a breeding ground for bacteria and infection. Infection’s can start small, but it’s easier than you think for that small infection in the nail bed to spread to the underlying bone – and then you’re in real trouble that even we can’t fix!
As soon as you develop a painful ingrown toenail – arrange an appointment with your local Podiatry Clinic. It’s a quick and painless procedure to correctly remove the ingrown nail & we can also provide you with proper advice on how to prevent a reoccurrence (prevention is always cheaper than the cure).
Change in Appearance
If you’re an adult who is all of a sudden developing calluses, corns, bunions or other visual changes – this is usually due to a new, underlying cause. Whilst this will start as a visual issue, it’ll soon turn into a physiological issue that can affect how you move & how your body feels generally. Honestly, the slightest change in how you walk as an adult can throw your whole musculoskeletal system out of kilter. A change in appearance needs to be assessed, treated & managed! If your feet are a different colour than usual – this needs checking immediately as it could be a sign of a more serious underlying issue!
Swelling
To put it simply – swelling means something is wrong. Either you have an injury whereby the swelling is a temporary result of this. Or you have an underlying medical issue. For example – Constant swelling of the feet could be a symptom of heart failure or pulmonary oedema, so needs to be determined by a medical professional such as a podiatrist to get the underlying problem sorted!
Numbness or Tingling
“I always have pins and needles in my feet” is a huge red flag for a Podiatrist. We have to firstly rule out that this isn’t just as a result of poorly fitting shoes. Once ruled out, we need to assess your feet for nerve damage – and possibly recommend speaking to your doctor to further rule out Diabetes which can cause peripheral neuropathy (nerve damage that commonly affects the feet).
Your lower limb health is vital. Without it, our mobility decreases which has a drastic knock on effect to our overall well-being, including mental health and general independence! It’s crucial that any of the above is flagged up to your local Podiatry Clinic as soon as possible. Early intervention can often make the biggest of differences – and prevent major problems further down the line. Doncaster Foot Clinic is here to help the residents of Doncaster, and the surrounding area, keep their lower limbs in peak condition.