Custom-made orthotics are molded devices that are constructed from a plaster impression of each foot. The mold, along with a podiatrist’s corrective prescription, is sent to a lab, which manufactures the orthotic by hand. The devices then slip into your shoes to correct your specific foot problem; they can be very useful in the treatment of foot, ankle, and knee pain.
Orthotics can:
- relieve stressed tendons and reduce the inflammation of tendonitis;
- relieve the pain and discomfort of bunions and heel spurs;
- provide shock absorption and arch support for painful knees;
- correct fallen arches/flat feet caused by excessive pronation or high heels; and
- help correct many other painful problems caused by heredity, ill-fitting shoes, pregnancy, and weight gain. Orthotics can also help prevent painful conditions before they begin.
Why do you need custom-made orthotics?
Most store-bought inserts (also called insoles) may provide some shock absorption, but little (if any) biomechanical control or support. If you can bend an insert in half, it is nothing more than a comfort aid.
As an athlete himself, Dr. Shier is especially sensitive to the foot and ankle injuries that his active patients may incur. His expertise in sports medicine allows him to isolate your foot, ankle, or knee condition and work with you to address it. He has prescribed orthotics for runners, soccer players, basketball players, golfers, tennis players, football players, as well as many “gym rats,” and helped rekindle their enthusiasm for activities that are suddenly pain-free.
Orthotics are like eye glasses for the feet. You can’t really change the mechanics of the foot, but you can compensate for its functional inadequacies. –Dr. Alan Shier
As a podiatrist, Dr. Shier can evaluate the biomechanics of your gait and posture to isolate the cause of your pain. He’ll explain how orthotics can help, and whether you need them for everyday shoes, running or sport shoes, or dress shoes.