Read the announcement at dcunited.com. 

Research has found that many women wear shoes that are too small and may need a larger size as they age. Dr. Positano refers to this as the “Cinderella complex”: trying to fit a larger foot into a smaller shoe size.

“It is unlikely that your shoe size at age 20 is going to be the same at age 50,” said Dr. Positano.

Wearing ill-fitting shoes can contribute to foot pain, tendonitis, blisters, ankle swelling, and even discomfort in the knees, hips, and lower back. Instead of expecting shoes to "break in," Dr. Positano advised choosing footwear that feels comfortable from the start, with adequate support in the heel, arch, and forefoot.

Read the full article at nypost.com. 

Sarr was injured during an offseason workout and is expected to make a full recovery before next season.

Read the full article at nba.com.

Watch the video at giants.com. 

"With this problem, the heel kind of goes out to the side and foot collapses down," said Elizabeth A. Cody, MD, foot and ankle surgeon at HSS. Hutchings explained that high-speed driving and intense pain do not mix on a racetrack."There's a technique we call heal and toe. You put the ball of your foot on the brake pedal, and you roll your foot to touch the gas pedal to raise the revs to match when we downshift and I actually go to do it and my foot won't move," he said.

Dr. Cody proposed that Hutchings have reconstruction surgery."His deformity was so bad, I had to fuse some of the bones together. It's such a big surgery, it's totally changing the shape of the foot and the primary goal of this surgery is to get you walking and standing pain free again, but I can't promise that you'll go back to racing cars," she said.

Watch the full segment at longisland.news12.com.

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“Basically, what we found is that the flatfoot patients had compromise of the spring ligament more than our control patients and the worse the cervical and spring ligaments became, the worse deformed the foot was, particularly in abduction,” Dr. Ellis said about the study, which was a Roger A. Mann award finalist at the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society Annual Meeting.  

“The take-home is that, going forward, we're going to have to start looking at the cervical ligament,” Dr. Ellis added. We need to study it more, and we're going to need to develop techniques to recreate or reconstruct that ligament as part of our flatfoot reconstructive surgeries. And my guess is that, over time, this is going to help increase or improve our patient outcomes with that surgery."

Read the full article at healio.com. 

Buying back-to-school shoes should be more about the right fit than the right look — but with luck you can combine the two.

Shoes play a big part in how kids' feet function and should be selected with care.

"When parents bring their children in with foot pain or an injury, the first thing I do is ask about their shoes. The problem is often inappropriate or poorly fitting footwear," said John S. Blanco, MD, pediatric orthopedic surgeon at HSS. 

"Footwear has a lot to do with how their feet function day to day, especially during athletic activities," said Dr. Blanco. 

"If we could make sure shoes were the right size, had proper support and were laced up appropriately, we would probably solve 80% of the basic foot problems we see in kids," explained Dr. Blanco.

Shopping for shoes at a specialty store can be helpful because staff there can measure the foot and help select the best shoe for a child's foot type, said Dr. Blanco. That doesn't mean the shoes need to cost a lot.

"The price of the sneaker has nothing to do with the quality of the shoe," Dr. Blanco explained. "I see kids all the time with shoes that may look fancy on the outside, but you look inside and see that they don't provide support."

Read the full article at Healthday.com. 

Dr. Positano said we often take our feet for granted until we have an issue. After the pandemic, no part of our body was more important than our feet, for both transportation and safety. Many people developed foot problems after the last 2 years.

“It is important to consider how you treat your feet,” advised Dr. Positano, who suggested the two week rule: if a person has a problem with their foot that has lasted over two weeks, it is time to seek medical attention. 

This segment aired on New York 1 on April 14. 

Read the full article at ny1.com. 

When it comes to sneaker shopping, how a new pair feels on your feet—roomy in the toes, sturdy in the arch—and whether they’re supportive enough of your ankles tend to be the primary boxes people want to tick off. 

What you may not realize, though, is that the structure of your shoes can affect parts of your body farther up, too, especially joints like your knees and hips. That's because they’re all connected, forming a kinetic chain that makes movement happen—something to keep in mind when shopping for the best sneakers for your knees.

Every time you take a step, many things are happening in your body to propel you forward, said. Dr. Henry. “Throughout the step, your hip muscles contract to stabilize your hip, your quads and hamstrings fire at specific times, and muscles in your lower leg activate in a chain of events,” she explained. Meanwhile, your knee mobility works to stabilize your center of gravity, decrease your energy expenditure, and absorb the shock of your heel striking the ground.

Read the full article at wellandgood.com. 

Read the full article at amny.com.

Additional coverage: 

• Yardbarker.com
• amny.com
• Yardbarker.com 

Dr. Positano discussed “pandemic foot” in The New York Times article after seeing foot pain increase in many patients due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused many to adjust their walking and standing patterns. He saw an increase in patients suffering from pain in their heels and Achilles tendons, noting, “People don’t realize how much mileage they put on walking and standing in their houses.”

Dr. Positano explained, “Foot and ankle problems may not be life-threatening, but they can be ‘lifestyle threatening’. They can affect a person’s ability to exercise, play sports, or even walk.”

Read the full article at Newyorksocialdiary.com.

According to Dr. Levine, who did not treat Holmgren, “A Lisfranc injury is a sprain (tear) of the ligaments that tightly hold the multiple Midfoot bones together. Normally, the Midfoot is a stable, immobile part of the foot when compared to the mobile/flexible Hindfoot (Ankle) or the Forefoot (ball of the foot/toes). If this injury is a minor/low-grade sprain, the Midfoot remains stable and surgery is not necessary. However, when the injury is a high-grade sprain, the stability of the Midfoot has been compromised. These injuries do not do well left alone and surgical treatment is necessary to restore the normal Midfoot stability.”

He explained, “While there are still those Lisfranc injuries that occur in car accidents and falls from a height, more and more these injuries are seen in sports. Classically, an athlete is running, jumping, leaping or landing and comes down ‘awkwardly’ (on someone else’s foot, for example). The Midfoot ‘buckles’ tearing the Lisfranc ligaments. The result in an ‘unstable’ Midfoot which is painful and unable to bear weight.”

Dr. Levine added, “The risk to future performance is the development of arthritis in the Midfoot. Midfoot arthritis causes pain and an inability to efficiently transmit power from the muscles of the leg to the ball of the foot for push-off.  This can manifest as a negative impact on quickness. The result could be less effectiveness on offense or defense or both.”

Read the full article at SI.com.

According to Dr. Elliot, the injury is significant, occurring when the mid-foot ligaments are torn or ruptured when the foot is pulled in an awkward direction.

He continued, “The foot has to, in order for running and pushing off and jumping, has to act like a rigid structure. In acting like a rigid structure to hold all these bones together, the ones in the mid-arch region are very, very strong. There are three different things that can happen. One, the ligament can pull off the bone, and the second one is when the ligament tears right in the middle, or you can get fractures as well as tearing of the ligaments.”

Dr. Elliott said the Thunder aren’t being overly cautious by holding Holmgren out for the entire season, even though the season doesn’t begin for nearly two months.

“In basketball, I would equate them more as a wide receiver,” he said. “They’re doing a lot of running on a hard surface. And you’re probably looking at the earliest, depending on which joint was injured, six months, but more likely between nine to 12 months.

“The basic premise is you’re rupturing the ligament because the ligament is seeing a load to it that’s higher than what it can handle,” he added.

Dr. Elliott said he watched the play during which Holmgren was injured on video and believed it was caused by all of Holmgren’s weight landing on his foot as he tried to defend LeBron James.

“He’s done that a million times, but obviously this had a little bit more weight,” Dr. Elliott explained. “And it was a different vector of force that was going through it than he normally had seen. That’s the same for most people. It’s usually fall onto the foot or a pushing-off type of injury that usually has some torque type of moment, as well.”

Dr. Elliot noted that the most concerning aspect of this injury for the Thunder is it could cause arthritis or chronic pain even after fully healed.

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Dr. Cody noted an uptick in foot problems during the pandemic, given people have been spending more time at home barefoot, which puts added strain on the ligaments and tendons that support the arch and ankle, or going for long walks and runs after months of limited activity. She is also seeing rising numbers of foot and ankle injuries among young athletes who train more intensely for sports.

The most common foot and ankle conditions she encounters are flatfoot deformities, foot/ankle arthritis, ankle replacement surgery and bunions, which require various types of treatment options.

Read the full article at Greenwichsentinel.com.

Dr. Ellis said, "[It's] a debilitating condition marked by several progressive deformities that require a combination of extensive reconstructive procedures, from cutting and reshaping bones in the foot to rerouting tendons in the fallen arch.”

He added, "Although patients can expect to eventually resume at least light to moderate physical activity, the recovery period can take many months to a year or more, and some of the most vigorous sports may not be possible.”

HSS clinical research scientist Robert Fuller said, "We think this study gives us the ability to say to a patient, 'If you're interested in doing yoga again, you can expect to return in about six to nine months, and be back to full form in about a year.' It can help provide clarity for a lot of people showing these surgeries can be life-changing in terms of getting them active again, but a substantial amount of people will face some extended recovery."

Read the full article at Healthday.com. Additional coverage: Healio.com.

According to Dr. Cody, “A lot of people think walking barefoot shouldn't be a problem, but actually walking barefoot can exacerbate a number of foot problems.” Examples could include plantar fasciitis, foot arthritis, tendinitis, a collapsed arch, a bunion, or hammer toe.

Dr. Cody explained that upon aging, it's normal for foot ligaments to stretch out and tendons to degenerate based on the stress put on the feet.

“Generally, a shoe that feels comfortable, is supportive, and doesn't bend too easily tends to be the better type of shoe for a majority of people,” noted Dr. Cody on the type of shoe to wear at home.

Read the full article at Health.com. Additional coverage: Womansworld.com.

Dr. Cody explained, “We found that the MIS procedures used less OR time, but there were no significant differences in radiographic outcomes – contrary to our hypothesis. There were no significant differences in PROMIS outcomes or satisfaction.”

Read the full article at Healio.com/news/orthopedics.

The data showed that that preoperative patient-reported outcomes measure information system, known as PROMIS, scores are predictive of 2-year postoperative improvement in patients with flexible adult-acquired foot deformity.

Dr. Ellis explained, “Once the foot starts collapsing, it never uncollapses, and the worry is that over time the ligaments will continue to stretch, the foot will flatten, and the pain will increase.”

Read the full article at Healio.com/news/orthopedics. Additional coverage: Healthday.com.

Dr. Cody explained, “A lightweight running shoe can mean either that it’s actually light in terms of weight and how it feels on your foot and body, or that it is on trend with the ‘minimalist’ style for running shoes.”

Dr. Cody does not recommend a minimalist (low cushion) shoe for people with foot pain, plantar fasciitis, arthritis or a foot injury, but generally speaking, “lightweight” running shoes are good for most people because less weight on the feet means less energy spent when running.

“People with foot pain or other foot issues just need to make sure they pick a lightweight running shoe that also has a good, thick, stiff sole with lots of cushion,” she added.

Read the full article at Womenshealth.com.

Dr. Metzl said that plantar fasciitis sufferers typically feel a sharp stab or deep ache in the heel or along the arch of the foot.

Plantar fasciitis-related heel pain tends to strike those who overtrain, neglect to stretch their calf muscles, or overdo hill workouts and speed intervals. “When you have very tight calf muscles, they will pull on the plantar fascia and cause a lot of pain,” noted Dr. Metzl.

According to Dr. Metzl it is critical to address plantar fasciitis as soon as there is pain. “When the fascia comes off the bone, it gets chronically inflamed and can heal exceptionally slowly. Plantar fasciitis can be sore for months because the healing response is proportionate to blood flow. When something has a good blood supply like a muscle, it heals quickly, but the plantar fascia essentially has no blood supply so it can take longer to heal,” he explained.

Dr. Metzl underscored the importance of regularly stretching the plantar fascia and Achilles tendon, first in the morning and three times during the day in both feet.

Read the full article at Runnersworld.com.

Though she is not treating the players, Dr. Johnson explained that a more likely timeline for return to sport is 8-12 weeks, but not a lot of research among athletes with these injuries has been done.

She noted a small pool of six athletes who had a piece of the fifth metatarsal removed were studied and data was published in 2011, and those athletes' average return to play was 11.5 weeks.

Dr. Johnson said that this type of injury can be very painful. “When the fractured part of the bone doesn't heal back to the main bone, it can create inflammation and just a very small amount of motion is painful and it swells,” adding, “When you take that piece out, it alleviates the pain.”

Read the full article at Indystar.com.

Read the full article at Footwearnews.com.

The plantar fascia can get tight and pull where it inserts at the heel bone. This can cause inflammation which leads to pain in the in the heel and Achilles tendon. Dr. Quirolgico explained, “Over time, if this keeps on happening, microtears in the plantar fascia can occur, and as it heals, each time the tissue becomes thicker and stiffer.”

Flat feet, higher arches, sudden weight gain and some exercises can put people at higher risk for plantar fasciitis. Dr. Quirolgico said possible causes could be running too far or too fast without building up your mileage or speed, and doing repetitive movements, like running on a hard surface and in unsupportive shoes.

“The first lines of treatment [for plantar fasciitis] include calf stretching, massage at the bottom of the foot or arch, over-the-counter anti-inflammatories like ibuprofen, and wearing gel cups for cushioning of the heel,” suggested Dr. Quirolgico.

Dr. Quirolgico recommended stretches and massage to help alleviate pain and tightness in the plantar fascia. For a massage she advised, “Sit up tall in a chair. Place a frozen water bottle in front of you. Place a towel over the bottle so the cold doesn’t harm your skin. You can use a tennis ball or lacrosse ball instead, but don’t use a golf ball—it may be too hard.”

This coverage originally appeared in TheHealthy.com. The original article is no longer available online.

RunnersWorld.com spoke to Jordan D. Metzl, MD, primary care sports medicine physician at HSS, who detailed what runners should know about stress fractures. “Like almost every overuse injury, the worse the symptoms get and the more you try to run through the pain, the worse you’ll make this injury,” explained Dr. Metzl. Dr. Metzl cited there are three ways to identify a stress fracture, which include point tenderness, swelling, and changes in your running form. MRIs are typically done to definitively diagnose a stress fracture, and you may want to stay off the bone to give it enough time to heal.

Regarding stress fracture prevention, Dr. Metzl advised adding mileage gradually to long runs to prevent injuries, shortening running stride and quickening the cadence.

Read the full article at RunnersWorld.com.

AARP.org spoke to Rock G. Positano, DPM, MSc, MPH, director of the non-surgical Foot and Ankle Service at HSS, who explained, “[Joe] DiMaggio’s injury and a failed surgery during his playing career were the big impetuses for non-surgical musculoskeletal foot and ankle interventions in this country.” Dr. Positano advised those who are experiencing foot pain to look for an expert that is affiliated with a podiatry or medical school and who specializes in nonsurgical interventions.

Five solutions provided that can build "happy feet" include finding shoes that fit appropriately; exercises that maintain foot function; maintaining a diet inclusive of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids; walking around barefoot at home; and rolling the foot on a lacrosse or golf ball for five minutes a day to provide the stimulation your foot requires.

Read the full article at AARP.org. This article also appeared in print in the May 2019 edition.