Arthrosis and flat feet: what is the connection?

Why does flat feet occur?

Foot deformity can be congenital or acquired. There are many reasons for this:

fractures, injuries, ankle sprains;
injuries of the foot, heel and tarsal bones;
rickets, against which the bones lose density and suffer from excess load;
weakness of muscles, ligaments and bones;
metabolic disorders;
excess body weight;
incorrect, narrow, uncomfortable shoes.

The percentage of congenital flat feet is not high - only 3%. The foot is deformed due to joint dysplasia. Regardless of the source of the problem, it must be addressed, since the pathology disrupts the normal biomechanics of movement and contributes to diseases of the musculoskeletal system.

Flat feet combined with excess weight are a huge threat to your joints.

What is transverse flatfoot?

Transverse flatfoot is a drooping transverse arch, which causes the foot to flatten and come into full contact with the floor. The metatarsals in this case fan out and the big toe deviates outward, causing the foot to become shorter in length. In a healthy person, the foot has arches (curves), which perform a shock-absorbing function and soften any load. Only the correct anatomical structure of the lower extremities allows you to avoid problems in the field of orthopedics.

Most often, people who have been on their feet for a long time know firsthand what it is – transverse flatfoot (grade 1, 2 or 3). At the same time, for those who are constantly in motion, a load is placed on the lower limbs that the ligaments are not able to withstand. In people who are forced to stand on their feet for a long time, on the contrary, the ligamentous apparatus becomes weak. It is worth noting that this happens in most cases (more than 80%). A less common cause of flat feet is a fracture of the foot. Sometimes the development of such a pathology can be affected by rickets, in which weakening of bone tissue is observed.

According to statistics, representatives of the fair sex suffer more often from transverse flat feet than men. As a rule, this is about 50% of patients who turn to a doctor for help. This disease begins to manifest itself at the age of 37–40 years. Thanks to obvious symptoms and effective treatment, transverse flatfoot can be managed at an early stage of development.

Why is this problem more pressing for women?

Most often, knee arthrosis and flat feet are diagnosed simultaneously in women. The reason is wearing narrow shoes with high heels. Shoes compress the toes and reduce the permeability of blood vessels. There is a deficiency of vitamins and microelements. The cartilage begins to deform and is not restored to its original shape. The next step is treatment of osteoarthritis.

Women are more susceptible to arthrosis along with flat feet, since endocrine changes in the female body occur more often and more intensely than in the male body. This problem is especially acute during menopause.

Women are more susceptible to arthrosis and flat feet

Symptoms

Most often, the patient does not experience any sensations, only a certain disturbance in gait, which can be noted by others or the doctor. The main symptom is ankle pain, which may increase with exercise. There may also be swelling in the ankle area. Symptoms can vary and usually depend on the severity of flat feet. Some people have uneven distribution of body weight and the person may notice that the heel of the shoe wears out faster on one side than the other. The most common symptoms of flat feet are:

Pain in the ankle area (inside), there may also be swelling there
Pain in the foot area
Pain in the arch of the foot
Calf pain
Knee pain
Pain in the hip area.
Back pain
Patients with flat feet may also experience stiffness in one or both legs.
One or both feet can be placed flat on the ground.
Uneven shoe wear.

What symptoms indicate that you have arthrosis and flat feet?

The problem can be recognized by the following signs:

foot pain;
swelling;
tired legs;
change in gait;
curvature of the bones of the foot.

At first, the pain appears sporadically. Then it intensifies and manifests itself even at rest. Pain from the foot is transmitted upward - to the lower back and hip joint. After a night's rest, a person experiences relief.

After active movement, swelling occurs on the foot. To get rid of pain and discomfort, you have to rest for several hours. It becomes increasingly difficult to squat and maintain balance as the midfoot gradually expands.

If flat feet and arthrosis of the ankle or knee progress, the gait changes. From the side, a heavy gait and club feet are noticeable. Posture is disturbed - problems with blood circulation and new diseases of other systems and organs arise.

Flat feet lead to a whole chain of problems

Foot pain

Gout

Arthritis

Diabetes

44442 05 March

IMPORTANT!

The information in this section cannot be used for self-diagnosis and self-treatment.
In case of pain or other exacerbation of the disease, diagnostic tests should be prescribed only by the attending physician. To make a diagnosis and properly prescribe treatment, you should contact your doctor. Foot pain: causes, what diseases it occurs with, diagnosis and treatment methods.

Definition

The foot consists of 26 bones, which, when connected to each other, form several joints, held together by numerous elastic muscles and strong ligaments. It bears the entire weight of the human body, so pain in the foot causes not only discomfort, but in many cases limits motor activity.

Foot pain is a common symptom that can be caused by a variety of reasons.

In some cases, when collecting anamnesis, the doctor needs only such characteristics of pain in the foot as its location and conditions of occurrence, as well as the presence of concomitant diseases and other symptoms that accompany this pain (numbness of the foot, itchy skin, etc.). In others, finding the cause of pain requires a thorough laboratory and instrumental examination.

Types of foot pain
Based on duration, they are distinguished:

Acute
pain in the foot - this phenomenon is most often associated with injuries - bone fractures, ruptured or sprained ligaments, severe bruises.
Chronic
pain that bothers the patient for a long time, in some cases, in the absence of proper treatment, a person develops a forced type of gait, which is associated with attempts to maintain the function of movement, while sparing the affected limb. The causes of this condition can be both diseases of the foot itself and pathologies of various body systems.

According to localization they distinguish:

Diffuse
pain – affects the entire foot.
Local
pain – clearly limited to a specific area.

Possible causes of pain in the foot
One of the main causes of pain is
traumatic injuries to the foot
(bruises, sprains, bone fractures). With fractures, the pain is sharp, and swelling is rapidly increasing. In many cases, the supporting function of the foot is lost. Bruises and sprains are characterized by moderate pain, swelling and hematomas. Support is preserved, sometimes limited.

The next reason is inflammatory processes

affecting the joints of the foot. These include gout, chondrocalcinosis (pseudogout), rheumatoid arthritis.

Gout is a disease that occurs due to a disorder in the metabolism of uric acid. The deposition of uric acid salts in the joints is called gouty arthritis. With this disease, the first metatarsophalangeal joint is most often affected, which is manifested by a severe attack of pain, redness of this joint, swelling, and fever. Typically, an exacerbation of gouty arthritis lasts 6–7 days.

Rheumatoid arthritis is a systemic disease that also affects the joints of the feet and hands. Characterized by morning stiffness and pain in the hands and feet.

Pain in the foot can be a symptom
of pathology of bone structures
. In this case, we can talk about diseases such as osteomyelitis, osteoporosis, bursitis of the metatarsal head, etc.

Osteomyelitis can result from open fractures, infected wounds, or surgical interventions on the foot. It manifests itself as an increase in pain and a deterioration in general condition. The pain is throbbing, bursting, intensifying with any movement.

In osteoporosis, bone strength is compromised due to decreased bone density. This condition is promoted by hormonal changes in women during menopause and during pregnancy, some endocrine diseases, insufficient supply of calcium and phosphorus from the outside, as well as excessive stress on the musculoskeletal system.

Pain in the feet with this disease is constant and intensifies with movement.

Bursitis of the metatarsal heads is a change in the articular capsules of the foot joints, associated with their increased trauma due to age-related thinning of the fatty layers that protect them. It manifests itself by the appearance of painful “bumps” in the projection of the joints of the feet.

To diseases of the ligamentous apparatus

foot pain syndromes include, for example, plantar fasciitis. The calcaneal fascia is a plate of connective tissue that starts from the heel bone and ends with attachment to the heads of the metatarsal bones. With increased loads, excess weight, and flat feet, the fascia is stretched and injured, which causes inflammation to develop in it. This condition is called plantar fasciitis and causes pain in the instep and sides of the foot.

A distinctive feature of this disease is also that the pain occurs in the morning, after a night's rest, intensifies with exercise, and in some situations can lead to lameness.

A condition where the fascia ossifies where it attaches to the heel bone and causes severe pain in the heel when walking is called a heel spur.

Diabetes may be a cause of foot pain

– a disease in which the microvasculature also suffers due to impaired glucose metabolism. Diabetic osteoarthropathy (a type of diabetic foot) primarily affects the metatarsal joints. The pain in the feet is not intense at first, but as the pathological process develops it becomes prolonged, appears even at rest, and severe deformation of the feet develops.

In the neuropathic form of diabetic foot, zones with hyperkeratosis are formed, and painful ulcers and cracks form in their place.

The ischemic form of diabetic foot is characterized by pain when walking, persistent swelling of the feet, and weakened pulsation of the arteries.

Diabetic foot with the development of gangrene, along with obliterating atherosclerosis and endarteritis, is one of the most serious complications of diabetes.

Flat feet

characterized by a change in the shape of the arch of the foot, which leads both to a redistribution of the load on the bones and muscles of the foot, and to compression of the vessels and nerves passing through that part of the sole that is not normally involved in the act of walking. The reasons for the development of flat feet include rickets suffered in childhood, wearing incorrectly selected uncomfortable shoes, weightlifting, congenital weakness of connective tissue, congenital difference in leg length, etc.

Inflammatory processes in the soft tissues of the foot

also cause pain. If infection gets into small wounds during a pedicure or the skin of the toes is injured, panaritium (purulent inflammation of the periungual tissues) may develop.

Panaritium is characterized by shooting pain in the affected finger, disturbing sleep, discharge of pus from the wound, redness and swelling of the finger.

An ingrown nail (onychocryptosis) is the ingrowth of the nail plate into the lateral edge of the nail fold. This condition manifests itself as jerking pain in the affected finger, swelling; a possible complication in the form of infection.

Which doctors should I consult for foot pain?

Pain in the foot brings significant discomfort and often makes it difficult to move, so you should decide in advance which doctor to see in order to avoid long standing in lines and unnecessary trips to the clinic. As a rule, an orthopedist is involved in the diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of people with deforming or traumatic damage to bones, joints, muscles, and ligaments of the musculoskeletal system. However, patients with diabetes first need to make an appointment with, and with vascular problems - with a phlebologist. Rheumatologists treat diseases associated with chronic connective tissue lesions. A traumatologist consults patients with foot injuries. If symptoms appear that resemble an ingrown toenail, osteomyelitis or panaritium, you should consult a surgeon.

In most cases, assistance can be provided on an outpatient basis, but sometimes hospitalization is required.
Diagnostics and examinations for foot pain The diagnosis of “Osteoporosis” is made on the basis of x-rays of bones and blood tests for calcium, phosphorus and other necessary indicators.

How is arthrosis treated for flat feet?

Since the patient has a history of two dangerous diseases of the musculoskeletal system, treatment must be comprehensive. Depending on the severity, clinical manifestations, and intensity of pain, the following measures and medications are prescribed:

painkillers and non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, for example diclofenac, ibuprofen, ketoprofen;
for muscle spasms of the foot - muscle relaxants to relax muscle tissue;
chondroprotectors – to stimulate the growth of cartilage tissue and partially reduce pain;
in difficult cases - surgical intervention (surgical correction of bone deformities, cleaning bones from osteophytes or endoprosthetics of a damaged joint).

What is the real danger of flat feet and can it be cured?

Will physiotherapy help in such cases?

Physiotherapy is also effective in reducing pain. After a course of procedures, there is no need to take large doses of medications, therefore, along with drug treatment, physiotherapy is often prescribed.

Manual therapy is aimed at correcting the position of the foot joints, correcting the heel and metatarsal bones, and toes. Chiropractors effectively restore blood circulation in the tissues around the damaged joint, especially if their sessions are combined with massage.
Mud baths and clay wraps will improve muscle tone, increase blood circulation, and activate metabolic processes.
The same problems are solved by other physical procedures, for example magnetic or laser therapy.

Physiotherapy does not treat flat feet or arthrosis: it is an auxiliary method

How to avoid arthrosis if you have flat feet

Flat feet today are easily corrected with the help of orthopedic insoles and special shoes. With arthrosis, the situation is more complicated: the disease has no cure and tends to progress. Therefore, if you have a deformed foot, remain vigilant so as not to trigger the disease. What can you do?

Avoid wearing tight shoes or high heels except occasionally.
It is no coincidence that orthopedists and rheumatologists recommend losing weight. If you have extra pounds, the heel bone deforms faster, as do the joints of your toes. Heart function deteriorates, coxarthrosis and gonarthrosis, spondyloarthrosis, and other diseases develop. Therefore, reconsider your diet and physical activity.
Try not to overexert your feet. Change positions more often, do not squat, do not cross your legs.
Take part in safe exercise, such as walking or swimming.
Walk barefoot on grass or sand more often - this is an excellent prevention of arthrosis with flat feet.

Arthrosis is a serious and dangerous disease. If there is a history of flat feet, the situation becomes more complicated, but by no means becomes hopeless. Reconsider your lifestyle and habits, take care of your joints - and they will serve you faithfully for many years!

What factors contribute to the development of flat feet?

Factors that may predispose to flat feet include age, gender, body composition, ligament laxity, family history, type of shoe, and age at which shoe wear began. Boys are twice as likely to have flat feet as girls. Obese and overweight children are more likely to have flat feet than children of normal weight. Children with ligamentous laxity may also be predisposed to flat feet due to poor arch development. Another important factor may be a family history of flat feet. Beginning to wear unsuitable shoes before the age of six may be another predisposing factor for flat feet.