Our foot arch helps to appropriately disperse the weight of our body across our foot with each step we take, so if this arch shape changes, it can have a significant impact on our feet and even systems elsewhere in our body like our ankles, knees and hips. Since a fallen or collapsed arch typically occurs slowly over the course of many months or years, it may not be all that obvious that your foot arch has undergone a sizable change in formation.
Because of this, it’s important to recognize some of the other more obvious symptoms of a fallen arch. Below, we explain what a collapsed arch feels like and how you can treat the condition.
Symptoms Of A Collapsed Arch
Although you may be able to notice that your foot arch is less pronounced than it was years ago, oftentimes other symptoms are more suggestive of a collapsed arch. Patients suffering from a fallen arch oftentimes deal with the following symptoms:
- Difficulty standing for extended periods
- Swelling on the inside of your ankle
- Foot pain when walking on uneven ground
- Changes in gait
- Leg cramps
- Balance issues
- New blister or callus formation
Collapsed foot arches can develop for a number of different reasons, and it’s important to get to understand why your arch fell so that appropriate treatment measures can be pursued. While degenerative changes caused by repetitive stress can lead to fallen arches, other underlying health conditions and factors can also lead to their onset. Those factors include diabetes, related foot conditions like plantar faciitis or arthritis, obesity and chronic stress/overuse.
Treating Collapsed Foot Arches
Your fallen foot arch may not be painful at the outset, but there’s a good chance that your foot and other joints are being tasked with handling more stress due to the structural changes in your arch. This could eventually lead to pain or new injury, or it can cause worsening symptoms in patients who are just noticing some discomfort in their feet.
Treatment begins by understanding the specific factors that led to the structural changes in your arch, because treatment for fallen arches caused by diabetes will be different than treatment for patients whose arch issue stems from a traumatic injury. Dr. Silverman and his team work to get to the bottom of your arch issue by asking questions, reviewing your medical history, conducting a physical exam and ordering imaging tests when necessary. From there, he’ll talk with you about your conservative options as well as where treatment will progress should those methods fail to produce the expected results. Some of the most common conservative treatment plans for collapsed foot arches include:
- Physical Therapy
- Exercise
- Weight Loss
- Orthotic Shoe Inserts/Braces
- Changing To More Supportive Footwear
- Activity Modification
- Pain Relievers
In instances where conservative means fail to address the underlying condition, a minimally invasive operation may be performed. Again, the specific nature of the procedure will be dependent on the needs of the individual, but they may include removing inflamed tissue, tendon transfers to stabilize the arch, bone realignment, the insertion of supportive hardware or a fusion of bones in order to restore proper shape and alignment. Surgery tends to have a high rate of success, but most people can mange their symptoms through conservative means alone.
For more information about collapsed foot arches, or to talk to a specialist about a different foot or ankle issue, reach out to Dr. Silverman and the team at Silverman Ankle & Foot today at (952) 224-8500.
