GENERAL PODIATRY

Prior to your podiatry consultation please ensure any nail polish has been removed.

Services provided:

Ingrown toenails
Long toenails and difficulty cutting nails
Corns and calluses
Dry skin, cracks or peeling skin
Fungal nail infections
Skin conditions such as dermatitis, psoriasis
Fungal nail infections
Blisters and ulcers
Nail surgery

Nail Surgery

Occasionally an ingrown toenail will not respond to conservative treatment. This is more likely if it’s very severe or has existed for a long time.

In this case, our podiatrists may recommend a small surgical procedure to permanently remove the offending toenail edge/spike.

This can be performed by our podiatrists. It is a low-complication procedure with a high success rate performed under local anesthetic.

DIABETES MANAGEMENT

“Every 30 seconds, someone in the world loses their leg to diabetes”
International Diabetes Federation, 2003

Diabetes Australia recommends diabetics see a podiatrist at least annually for a diabetic foot assessment. This will help detect any potential problems. Increased podiatry care is highly recommended for those diabetics assessed as high risk.

The potential effects of diabetes on the feet are often mis-understood or ignored. Diabetes affects the feet in two main ways:

1 Nerve damage, Peripheral Neuropathy where you may experience pins and needles, numbness, burning or loss of feeling,

2 Poor blood supply, Peripheral Vascular Disease which results in reduced blood flow to the feet and lower limb, affecting your body’s ability to heal wounds and fight infections.

Diabetics often suffer from other conditions including heart and vascular diseases such as atherosclerosis, arthritis and other nerve conditions, all of which can increase your risk of developing foot problems.

We take the time to explain and help you to understand how and why foot complications happen and ways to prevent them from developing. We encourage all our patients with diabetes to adopt a proactive approach, so they can manage their diabetes and continue to lead a healthy lifestyle.

Your consultation will include:

Neurological and vascular screening
Wound management and prevention
General foot and nail care
Footwear and fitting advice
Pressure deflection

After your diabetic consultation, a full report will be sent to your GP or your referring specialist.

Our podiatrist Fiona Milbank has completed a Graduate Certificate in Diabetes Education and Management, to become a Podiatrist/Diabetes Educator. So, your diabetic feet will be excellent hands!

DIABETES MANAGEMENT

“Every 30 seconds, someone in the world loses their leg to diabetes”
International Diabetes Federation, 2003

The potential effects of diabetes on the feet are often mis-understood or ignored. Diabetes affects the feet in two main ways:

1 Nerve damage, Peripheral Neuropathy where you may experience pins and needles, numbness, burning or loss of feeling,

2 Poor blood supply, Peripheral Vascular Disease which results in reduced blood flow to the feet and lower limb, affecting your body’s ability to heal wounds and fight infections.

Your consultation will include:

Neurological and vascular screening
Wound management and prevention
General foot and nail care
Footwear and fitting advice
Pressure deflection

After your diabetic consultation, a full report will be sent to your GP or your referring specialist.

Our podiatrist Fiona Milbank has completed a Graduate Certificate in Diabetes Education and Management, to become a Podiatrist/Diabetes Educator. So, your diabetic feet will be excellent hands!

Biomechanics & Orthotics

At Foot + Nail Solutions Podiatry our mission is to relieve your foot and leg problems, to leave you pain free and walking comfortably.

We will Firstly:

Review your full medical history.
Assess your general foot/leg condition.
Diagnose and treat any recognised condition.
Assess your footwear to ensure it is suitable and give advice on what footwear would help alleviate any underlying possible causes of pain.
Supply general care advice to improve your overall well-being/comfort.

Why do you have foot and leg pain?

Most foot pain is caused by poor foot/leg function and/or poorly fitting/functioning shoes. The bones tendons and muscles should all be performing in the correct position. If there is an abnormal alignment of any of these structures, then abnormal wear and tear occurs in the feet ankles knees hips and back.

Overuse injuries occur when muscles must work harder to control your gait (walking/running) leading to strains, sprains, tendon and muscle pains and joint problems.

The bony structure of the feet may also alter leaving you with dropped arches, toe deformities, heel pain and tired aching feet. Even if you’re not suffering now you may cause excessive wear to joints leading to osteoarthritis in later life.

Shoes may impinge joints causing corns or by their poor function allow your foot to ‘collapse’ causing shortening/over stretching of the tendons and ligaments of the feet and legs. We will give you shoe fitting advice and which shoes are best suited to your needs.

Biomechanics explained

Generally, your left and right sides are unsymmetrical, and it will be the same for your feet and legs. Additionally, you may have a mild deformity, which is currently undiagnosed, for example a bowed leg or one leg longer than the other.

In our daily lives your body has to cope with these imbalances and anomalies and compensate for them. High-impact sporting activities may cause you to become more aware of these underlying issues and affect your enjoyment and ability to perform or be as active.

Your body’s ability to compensate puts your body structures such as muscles, joints, ligaments and tendons under increased strain as they begin functioning in an abnormal or compromised manner. This may cause the affected part of your body to become inflamed or injured.

Our biomechanics assessment is a thorough investigation into your lower limb function. We will look closely for any abnormalities and compensations to discover the underlying possible causes of heel pain, knee pain and even back pain to improve your mobility and wellbeing.

Orthotics

If required, we will prescribe you orthotics. An ‘orthosis’ is the term that describes a device that supports, realigns or assists in the function of your muscular-skeletal system.

We stock a large range of prefabricated functional orthotics which we can modify to your individual prescription.

If required we will provide custom orthotics using the latest materials, including carbon fiber. This will require a casting appointment, so we can take an impression of your feet at their optimum position. The casts are then filled to produce a positive model of your foot which is then balanced and modified to control foot and leg function.

The carbon fiber is then heat molded and vacuum formed to your casts. Further additions may be added to improve foot function and comfort. Carbon fiber produces a thin light and very functional orthotic that is almost indestructible and can be made to fit most shoes.