A common presentation for tradies and retailers alike, fatigue of the feet and legs often present after a period of walking and standing. It is often related to poor footwear and can be associated with high arch or low arch foot posture.

Bony deformities are often due to a mechanical dysfunction causing a gradual shift in the bone alignment and a protruding bony prominence. Osteoarthritic change at the joint or surrounding joints may also occur.

Before heading to the surgeon’s office, conservative management to address the mechanical dysfunction including simple unloading, supportive devices and appropriate footwear can often result in a significant improvement in pain and function.

In adults, this can be related to overload and inflammation of the plantar fascia (plantar fasciitis), the fat pad surrounding the heel, and/or a heel spur. In children aged 8-14, heel pain is likely to be a common overuse injury called Sever’s Disease, where the growth plate at the heel becomes inflamed.

A plantar fascial tear and a growth plate fracture can go undiagnosed, so make sure you seek professional advice promptly, particularly when there is an inability to bear weight on the foot.

A general podiatrist should be the first point of call for skin and nail problems of the foot. Often a simple, pain-free debridement of built up dead skin can immediately resolve pain involved with corns and callouses.

A podiatrist is also very well equipped to diagnose and manage skin conditions of the foot including warts and recurrent blistering. Ingrown, thickened and fungal nails are best managed by a podiatrist.

As part of a comprehensive diabetic management plan to reduce diabetic foot complications, a podiatrist’s role is to ensure that the skin supplied by diabetic-affected nerves and vascular supply are carefully monitored, at least bi-annually.

We monitor the blood supply to and from your feet, changes in sensation and mechanical structure and increased plantar pressure and skin nutrition in the lower limb.

Peter’s expertise allows him to use hand examination and not a scanner.

Shoes are an important factor in determining how much pain a Morton’s neuroma causes. Research has shown that tight fitting shoes, such as high heels, can cause this condition to occur.

Metatarsalgia refers to pain at the ball of the foot, at the head of one or more metatarsal bones. It is basically a bruise of the bone or an inflammation of the soft tissue around the joint between a metatarsal and a toe bone. This often occurs as a result of overuse, excessive walking or running without adequate cushioning beneath the bones at the ball of the foot.

A full range of foot orthoses are available at the clinic. All orthoses are custom made for the individual patient and treatment includes a full biomechanical examination, gait analysis and joint evaluation.

A range of minor procedures are performed in our clinic under local anaesthesia. The most common of these are removal of ingrown toenails, removal of skin lesions, and foreign body extraction. All surgery is performed under aseptic conditions using appropriate sterile procedures and instruments.

If you’ve suffered a lower limb injury as the result of exercise or sporting activity, come and talk to me. My job is not to prevent you from playing sport but rather to work with you to get you back to optimal fitness as soon as possible. Treatment may include orthotics, exercises, stretching, prescription and taping.

Doppler ultrasound is performed to ascertain the health of your arterial supply and an ankle-brachial index, is also measured and recorded.

Our clinic routinely treats foot and ankle injuries with varying degrees of severity. Whilst major injuries should always attend a hospital in the first instance, we are experienced in treating sporting injuries such as ankle sprains, stress fractures, removal of embedded foreign bodies, and repair of minor lacerations/cuts

Children are frequently seen in our clinic for management of foot pain, gait and postural anomalies, flat feet, skin conditions and recurrent nail problems.