There are many great treatment options for osteoarthritis of the foot and ankle. However one of the most promising therapies is platelet rich plasma injections. This procedure is done in the office and involves using your own natural healing cells to stimulate healing potentials. We have seen many candidates for joint replacement that have benefited from platelet rich plasma therapy. It is important to be evaluated properly before adding platelet rich plasma injections, including  of the joint function and x-rays to see if your candidate. We find platelet rich plasma good alternative surgical therapy or joint replacement.

There are many great treatment options for osteoarthritis of the foot and ankle. However one of the most promising therapies is platelet rich plasma injections. This procedure is done in the office and involves using your own natural healing cells to stimulate healing potentials. We have seen many candidates for joint replacement that have benefited from platelet rich plasma therapy. It is important to be evaluated properly before adding platelet rich plasma injections, including  of the joint function and x-rays to see if your candidate. We find platelet rich plasma good alternative surgical therapy or joint replacement.

Achilles tendinitis is a common condition that can affect many active people. The majority of people that have Achilles tendinitis have this occurring from overuse.

There are many grade stretching routines that can be initiated to help the Achilles tendon. One of the most successful treatments that we have seen is shockwave technology. We are one of the only few clinics that has shockwave technology available. The shockwave technology allows revascularization of the tendinitis and a quicker return to activities. It is important to treat the Achilles tendinitis quickly as this can lead to rupture and other further complications. If you are experiencing any pain, please call us at 425-391-8666.

A prescription orthotic is a medical device used to control biomechanical instabilities of the foot and ankle. There are many different types of prescription orthotics that can be produced depending on the pathology present. It is important to have a complete biomechanical evaluation as well as gait analysis for a proper orthotic to be prescribed. Some of the newer materials used in prescription orthotics can be made in a more low profile fashion so we can fit them in variety of shoes. We have found the majority of foot and ankle conditions can be resolved with a successful prescription orthotic.

There are a lot of treatments available for treatment of fungal toenails. Being that there are a lot of treatments available, this tells us that fungal toenail treatment can be challenging. The most effective techniques we have found are a combination of therapeutic approaches. We have an FDA approved laser that we combined with some topicals and an oral vitamin that gives us a very high success rate. Often times we are able to avoid oral medications that require liver function testing. Our protocol is the most successful protocol we have seen, and it has taken us years to develop it. Patients have seen dramatic improvement in nails.

Today we're going to talk about Cheilectomy. Cheilectomy is a surgery that's done for arthritis of the great toe joint. What happens is people develop arthritic spurs from mechanical jamming of this joint --they get wear and tear of the joint. The cartilage becomes more narrow and damaged, and they get large painful arthritic spurs on top of the joint. The joint becomes quite stiff. It becomes enlarged and it becomes painful. Once someone has this, they may have orthotics, they may have had injections, but at some point, a lot of people have surgery. The goal of surgery is to clean up the spurs and remove the enlargement of the joint. When we do the surgery, we make an incision over the top of the joint, and we go down on the capsule, which strengthens the joint. Once we have access to the joint, we can inspect the joint and look at the cartilage. Once we've cleaned out the joint and exposed it, we take a saw and remove the spurs. We also remove the top portion of the joint to improve the gliden of the joint. Once the surgery is done, patients are usually put into a cast boot. For this procedure, we use local anesthetic. If you would like to make an appointment, please call us at 425-391-8666. 

Achilles tendon ruptures are common condition for males, especially between the ages of 40 and 60. Often, patients present feeling as though someone has kicked them in the back of the leg or the feeling of a pop in the back of their ankle. There are many alternative treatment options for Achilles tendinitis, including shockwave therapy, platelet rich plasma therapy, and anteromedial injections. If you experience any sort of Achilles tendon pain or swelling, it is important to get in and see a foot and ankle physician as soon as possible. Our clinic offers the latest treatment modalities for Achilles tendinitis that are not available elsewhere. We have vast experience in treating Achilles tendinitis with platelet rich plasma injections that have yielded a high success rate. There are side off of these treatment modalities. If you would like to schedule appointment call 425-391-8666.

One of the most common causes of big toe pain is arthritis. This is a common condition that can cause pain and swelling around the big toe. Often times patients relate increasing pain with activity, especially running and jumping. This is commonly called a Hallux Limitus or Hallux Rigidus depending on the severity of the arthritis. There are many great treatment modalities available for this condition at Issaquah Foot and Ankle Specialists. It is important to see your foot and ankle specialist any time you develop big toe pain as we can help alleviate some of t1his pain and slow progression of the disease process.

​

An important distinction needs to be made between an over-the-counter foot insert and a custom molded prescription orthotic. Any shoe insert that you by over-the-counter is nothing more than a piece of plastic with some foam. A shoe store, even if it’s a running shoe store, does not provide custom orthotic. A Custom molded prescription orthotic is made by a foot and ankle physician and involves taking biomechanical measurements, performing a gait analysis and incorporating any pathological foot or ankle conditions. Custom molded prescription orthotic can be made for athletic shoes, flats, dress shoes and even some high heels. The best custom molded prescription orthotics are made at Issaquah Foot & Ankle Specialists.

Please contact us if you have any questions, concerns, or if you would like to make an appointment at (425) 391-8666.

How long will it take for my heel pain to go away?  This is a great question.  Plantar fasciitis is one of the most common problems that we see at our clinic.  Some people come in fairly quickly after the problem starts.  These people can have fairly fast improvement and/or full recovery.  Other people tough it out and wait to come in until several months or sometimes even longer than a year.  The longer that you wait before treating this problem, the longer it will take for the problem to resolve in general.  Also sometimes there is much more inflammation associated with the plantar fasciitis.  

When a patient comes in to our clinic with plantar fasciitis or heel pain, we like to do ultrasound diagnostic imaging and evaluate the status of the plantar fascia.  Most commonly, the inflammation is at the attachment site at the calcaneus or heel bone.  The normal thickness of the plantar fascia in this location is 3–4 millimeters.  If the plantar fasciitis is 6 mm or greater typically it is going to take some time for this to get better.  In more severe cases the plantar fasciitis may be 8–10 millimeters thick and this will take much more work to resolve.  The more severe cases can take several months before there is 90% improvement or better.  In these cases there may even be a partial tear of the fascia.  Usually if it is this severe, patients are put in a cast boot and we do a cortisone injection.  But this is just part of the solution.  The nice thing about a cortisone injection is that it offers immediate and fairly dramatic improvement.  But if this was the only treatment that we provided, the problem very likely would recur.  

We have to combine this with other treatments to make certain that the problem continues to improve and resolve.  This includes mechanical support such as prescription orthotics good shoes and good house shoes (no barefoot!).  For severe cases we also often utilize extracorporal shockwave therapy.  This is a great treatment alternative to a cortisone injection.  I actually recommend a cortisone injection or the shockwave therapy, but we don't combine these two treatments.  These two treatments do not complement each other.  Remember that the recovery time for plantar fasciitis is quite variable as we discussed above.  And again, the more severe cases can "turn the corner" quite a bit quicker if a more aggressive treatment such as a cortisone injection or shockwave therapy is done.

Please contact us if you have any questions, concerns, or if you would like to make an appointment at (425) 391-8666.