Do I need orthotics?

Posted 11 Jan '21

 Not everyone needs orthotics. Despite the belief of others, orthotics are not something that will be of great value or use to every person, particularly if they’re not experiencing any problems and don’t have any fitness goals where they want to optimise their movement. If you have foot or leg pain, an injury, or a condition limiting your function, movement and quality of life, however, orthotics may be a good treatment component to help. This will depend on your diagnosis, and something that our podiatrists will go through with you when they explain the best treatment options for your circumstances. 

As orthotics are a popular topic with many people wanting to know if they can get big benefits from replacing the innersoles of their shoes with orthotics, here are a few signs that indicate to us that orthotics could help you:

1. When you look at your feet, do they roll inwards? 

If your feet roll inwards so that your arches are close to (or touching) the ground, you likely have pronated feet with a flatter foot type. Although pronation is a normal part of walking, overpronation contributes to various kinds of foot, knee and even lower back pains. If you have excessively pronated feet and you’re experiencing foot or leg pain or discomfort, it’s a sign that orthotics could benefit you.

2. Are you wearing down the sole on the outer edge of your shoes? Are you known to roll your ankle? 

If the answer is yes, you may have a supinated or high-arched foot type. Having this foot type does not mean you need orthotics, but that you are developing issues related to your foot position which may include lateral ankle instability, leg length differences or even excess pressure on the lateral borders of your feet or tips of your toes. In all of these cases, orthotics can help.

3. Do you have ongoing pressure areas on your feet? Signs are annoying or painful calluses, corns, blistering, pain, or even a persistent or recurrent ulcer?

Orthotics are a fantastic and effective way to offload areas of high pressure to help with all of these problems. We also identify what is making you prone to these problems and help correct them using orthotics.

4. Are you getting ongoing leg pain or unresolved injuries causing complications?

Often, orthotics can assist with pain reduction and alignment to alleviate these issues. For more than one in two people, we find that prescribing orthotics unintentionally helps resolve other problems for our patients, such as lower back pain.

5. Do you fall a lot? Are you worried about mum or dad, nan or pop, who keep hurting themselves?

Falls can and should be avoided as a top priority. It is well documented that reducing falls in the elderly will increase their life expectancy because having a fall and a subsequent fracture is strongly associated with mortality. Good orthotics paired with good footwear and a custom exercise plan can reduce the number of preventable falls, with podiatry interventions being shown to prevent 36% of falls.

Custom Foot Orthotics: Final Thoughts

Orthotics can be an incredibly valuable medical device that help many of our patients recover from pain and injury, improve their sports performance, stay mobile and comfortable on their feet for longer, and prevent falls and other injuries that can have devastating or frustrating consequences.

At each appointment, our podiatrists complete extensive assessments in which they’ll diagnose the problem you’re experiencing and understand the underlying causes. From here, they’ll create a comprehensive treatment plan and advise you if orthotics will add value to your recovery and foot health, or if a different treatment route is in your best interest.

You don’t have to worry about whether orthotics are right for you - our podiatrists are here to help and optimise your recovery in the best, evidence-based way for you.

Book your appointment with our podiatry team online here or call us on (07) 3356 3579.