
What is Metatarsalgia?
Metatarsalgia is the name we use to describe pain to the front part of your foot – or forefoot. ‘Metatars’ – affecting your metatarsal bones and ‘algia’ is from Greek, to describe pain. Metatarsalgia is not an illness in itself, but more a description of pain that has an underlying cause or causes, which we’ll look at below. In some cases, the metatarsal bone(s) can even end up with a stress fracture.
ما هو ألم مشط القدم؟
ألم مشط القدم هو الاسم الذي نستخدمه لوصف الألم في الجزء الأمامي من قدمك – أو مقدمة القدم. “مشط القدم” – تؤثر على عظام مشط القدم وكلمة “algia” هي من اللغة اليونانية لوصف الألم. ألم مشط القدم ليس مرضًا في حد ذاته، ولكنه وصف للألم له سبب أو أسباب كامنة، والتي سننظر إليها أدناه. في بعض الحالات، يمكن أن ينتهي الأمر بعظم (عظام) مشط القدم إلى كسر الإجهاد.
Where Does It Occur?
Metatarsalgia affects the front of your foot – where your metatarsal bones are. You have five metatarsal bones and mostly it only affects the first one or two of your toes. It can happen on just one foot, or both. The pain is normally just behind your toes or at the ball of your foot. The pain can feel like a dull ache, a burning sensation and vary from mild discomfort to so painful it affects how you walk.
What Causes It?
Anything that puts extra stress or weight forward onto the front of your foot can cause metatarsalgia. Risk factors include:
- High heeled shoes – forcing as much as 95% of your body weight forward onto your forefeet, rather than the roughly 50-50% between front and heel
- Genetic foot shape (biomechanics) – particularly high arches, called pes cavus and supination or excessive pronation
- Claw or hammer toes – forcing your metatarsals to flex down towards the ground
- Previous bunion surgery to correct bunions (hallux valgus) displacing extra weight through the ball of your foot
- Arthritis
- A stiff ankle that is plantar flexed (down towards the ground) with reduced dorsiflexion (when you pull your foot up towards you)
- Athletes involved in sports that place more force on the forefoot – dancers, runners (especially barefoot running), footballers and tennis players.
- A short 1st metatarsal bone, leading to more weight onto your 2nd metatarsal bone
- A collapsed transverse arch.
أين يحدث؟
يؤثر ألم مشط القدم على الجزء الأمامي من قدمك، حيث توجد عظام مشط القدم. لديك خمس عظام مشط القدم، وفي الغالب يؤثر ذلك فقط على أول إصبع أو إصبعين من أصابع قدميك. ويمكن أن يحدث على قدم واحدة فقط، أو كليهما. عادة ما يكون الألم خلف أصابع قدميك مباشرة أو عند مشط قدمك. يمكن أن يبدو الألم وكأنه ألم خفيف، وإحساس حارق، ويتراوح من انزعاج خفيف إلى مؤلم جدًا بحيث يؤثر على طريقة المشي.
ما هي أسباب ذلك؟
أي شيء يضع ضغطًا أو وزنًا إضافيًا على مقدمة قدمك يمكن أن يسبب ألم مشط القدم. تشمل عوامل الخطر ما يلي:
الأحذية ذات الكعب العالي – تدفع ما يصل إلى 95% من وزن جسمك للأمام على قدمك الأمامية، بدلاً من 50-50% تقريبًا بين الأمام والكعب.
شكل القدم الوراثي (الميكانيكا الحيوية) – وخاصة الأقواس العالية، التي تسمى قدم جوفاء والاستلقاء أو الكب المفرط
أصابع القدم المخلبية أو المطرقة – مما يجبر مشط القدم على الانحناء نحو الأرض
جراحة سابقة للوكعة لتصحيح الأورام (إبهام القدم الأروح) مما يؤدي إلى إزاحة الوزن الزائد من خلال مقدمة قدمك
التهاب المفاصل
تيبس في الكاحل يكون مثنيًا أخمصيًا (لأسفل باتجاه الأرض) مع انخفاض عطف ظهري (عندما تسحب قدمك للأعلى نحوك)
الرياضيون المشاركون في الرياضات التي تضع قوة أكبر على مقدمة القدم – الراقصون، والعدائون (خاصة الركض حافي القدمين)، ولاعبي كرة القدم، ولاعبي التنس.
عظمة مشط القدم الأولى قصيرة، مما يؤدي إلى زيادة الوزن على عظمة مشط القدم الثانية
قوس عرضي منهار
How Can It Be Treated?
Stopping the pain, or even preventing it from occurring in the first place means that we must identify the underlying cause(s) and correct them, rather than just treating any pain superficially in the short term. Here at Dubai Podiatry Centre, we carry out detailed lower limb biomechanical assessments, looking at your foot posture and function, range of motion in your joints, medical history, activity levels and lifestyle, footwear, gait (your unique walking and running style) and much more! We can then work to correct or alleviate the underlying problem.
Treatment options depend on the underlying cause – such as biomechanics, footwear, previous surgery.
Biomechanical issues such as supination, excessive pronation or ankle stiffness can generally be corrected with the use of corrective custom orthotics, which our Podiatrists make in our orthotics lab from your individual foot mold, applying their prescription depending on your diagnosis to alleviate force away from the forefoot or to correct the motion and posture of your foot and ankle.
Transverse arch collapse, neuromas and neuritis may be treated with either custom orthotics or perhaps even some specialist metatarsal padding placed at very specific points within your footwear.
Post bunion-surgery, it is important to follow the advice of your orthopaedic surgeon for follow up splinting, care and post-surgical orthotics to hold his/her good work in place. Orthopaedic surgeons commonly refer to us for post surgical orthotics.
We also provide footwear advice for both sports and smart dress / work shoes that we have pe rsonally researched. Good footwear options for both men and women are available in Dubai – one of the many great benefits our city has are the vast range of shopping malls and options! Makers such as Church’s (for both men and women) and Ferragamo are amongst our favourites and provide stylish low-heeled foot comfort and earn admiring glances from the boardroom at DIFC to an evening of fine dining. Options for casual and sports wear are wide and varied and we are delighted to advise each patient on the style, make and model of sports or casual shoe they should shop for to suit their specific foot shape and gait. If you’re advised orthotics, our bespoke custom orthotics are designed to be worn discreetly within even the most slim fit of football cleats or elegant work shoes.
Any form of burning, ache or pain at your forefoot is not ‘normal’ and you do not have to tolerate it. Foot pain can have real impact on your quality of life – making you feel miserable, upset and even avoiding activities you used to enjoy such as running around with the kids, a jog after work or strolling through the mall with friends.
What Do I Do Now?
We’re here because we understand how foot pain can affect you, and our aim is to get you back to healthy, pain free feet in the shortest time.
وكيف يمكن علاجها؟
إن إيقاف الألم، أو حتى منعه من الحدوث في المقام الأول، يعني أنه يجب علينا تحديد السبب (الأسباب) الأساسي وتصحيحها، بدلاً من مجرد علاج أي ألم بشكل سطحي على المدى القصير. هنا في مركز دبي لعلاج الأقدام، نقوم بإجراء تقييمات ميكانيكية حيوية مفصلة للأطراف السفلية، مع النظر إلى وضعية قدمك ووظيفتها، ونطاق الحركة في مفاصلك، والتاريخ الطبي، ومستويات النشاط ونمط الحياة، والأحذية، والمشية (أسلوب المشي والجري الفريد لديك) و أكثر بكثير! يمكننا بعد ذلك العمل على تصحيح المشكلة الأساسية أو التخفيف منها.
تعتمد خيارات العلاج على السبب الأساسي – مثل الميكانيكا الحيوية، والأحذية، والجراحة السابقة.
يمكن عمومًا تصحيح المشكلات الميكانيكية الحيوية مثل الاستلقاء أو الكب المفرط أو تصلب الكاحل باستخدام أجهزة تقويم العظام التصحيحية المخصصة، والتي يصنعها أطباء الأقدام لدينا في مختبر تقويم العظام الخاص بنا من قالب قدمك الفردي، ويطبقون الوصفة الطبية اعتمادًا على تشخيصك لتخفيف القوة بعيدًا عن القدم. مقدمة القدم أو لتصحيح حركة ووضعية قدمك وكاحلك.
يمكن علاج انهيار القوس المستعرض والأورام العصبية والتهاب الأعصاب إما باستخدام أجهزة تقويم العظام المخصصة أو ربما حتى بعض حشوات مشط القدم المتخصصة الموضوعة في نقاط محددة جدًا داخل حذائك.
بعد جراحة الورم، من المهم اتباع نصيحة جراح العظام الخاص بك لمتابعة التجبير والرعاية وتقويم العظام بعد الجراحة للحفاظ على عمله الجيد في مكانه. عادةً ما يلجأ إلينا جراحو العظام لإجراء تقويم العظام بعد الجراحة.
نحن نقدم أيضًا نصائح بشأن الأحذية لكل من الأحذية الرياضية والملابس الأنيقة/أحذية العمل التي قمنا بالبحث فيها شخصيًا. تتوفر خيارات جيدة للأحذية لكل من الرجال والنساء في دبي – إحدى المزايا الرائعة العديدة التي تتمتع بها مدينتنا هي المجموعة الواسعة من مراكز التسوق والخيارات! تعد العلامات التجارية مثل تشيرتش (للرجال والنساء) وفيراغامو من بين المفضلات لدينا وتوفر راحة أنيقة للقدم بكعب منخفض وتحظى بنظرات الإعجاب من قاعة الاجتماعات في مركز دبي المالي العالمي إلى أمسية من الطعام الفاخر. خيارات الملابس غير الرسمية والرياضية واسعة ومتنوعة، ويسعدنا أن ننصح كل مريض بشأن أسلوب وصنع ونموذج الأحذية الرياضية أو الأحذية غير الرسمية التي يجب أن يتسوقها لتناسب شكل قدمه ومشيته. إذا تم نصحك باستخدام أجهزة تقويم العظام، فقد تم تصميم أجهزة تقويم العظام المخصصة لدينا ليتم ارتداؤها بشكل سري حتى داخل أحذية كرة القدم الأكثر نحافة أو أحذية العمل الأنيقة.
أي شكل من أشكال الحرق أو الألم أو الألم في مقدمة قدمك ليس “طبيعيًا” وليس عليك تحمله. يمكن أن يكون لألم القدم تأثير حقيقي على نوعية حياتك – مما يجعلك تشعر بالبؤس والانزعاج وحتى تجنب الأنشطة التي اعتدت الاستمتاع بها مثل الجري مع الأطفال أو الركض بعد العمل أو التجول في المركز التجاري مع الأصدقاء
ماذا أفعل الآن؟
نحن هنا لأننا نفهم كيف يمكن أن يؤثر ألم القدم عليك، وهدفنا هو إعادتك إلى أقدام صحية خالية من الألم في أقصر وقت.
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WhatsApp : +971 50 355 3024 | Call: +971 4 343 5390


What is a bunion?
We’ve heard a lot about the damaging effects of high heels on your body – but are flip flops any better? It’s so easy to slip into flip flops – but how and when should we wear them? Chief Podiatrist Michelle Champlin explains the effects of flip flops on your feet and body.
Michelle Champlin leads the foot experts at Dubai Podiatry Centre and has been practicing as a podiatrist in Dubai for over 15 years. She has seen plenty of foot injuries and accidents related to flip flops over the years, as well as longer term chronic foot complaints that over use of flip flops have contributed to. It’s not all bad news – there is a time and a place for flip flops as well as styles of flip flops that improve wearability.
What kinds of problems can wearing flip flops cause?
Any shoe that is secured to your foot with straps, buckles or laces is preferable to a slip on style – whether ballet pumps or flip flops. The risk of ankle sprains/twists is higher with slip on styles. They also encourage you to ‘over-pronate’ – when your foot and ankle ‘rolls in’ as your foot works to keep the flip flop on. You most likely won’t be aware of this compensation while you walk.
Increased strain on the plantar fascia tendon, leading to a burning or stabbing sensation in your heel when you walk – plantar fasciitis. This is due to the lack of arch support in the flip flop – encouraging your medial long arch to collapse and too much strain on the plantar fascia that connects your forefoot to your heel bone. The lack of support can also contribute to splaying of your forefoot – collapsed transverse arch and formation of bunions and bunionettes and sometimes metatarsalgia.
Toes tend to claw or ‘scrunch up’ when your foot is mid-air to keep the flip flop on – again you won’t be aware your foot is doing this.
Friction from the flip flop thong can cause blisters or minute cuts between your toes, leading to entry points for fungal or bacterial infections such as athlete’s foot.
When wearing flip flops, you take shorter strides and roll your ankle inwards – leading to ankle, knee or hip pain as more weight is placed on the medial, or inside, of your foot and knee joints. Wearing thin soled, unsupportive flip flops for long periods of walking, such as when sight seeing, can lead to stress fractures of your metatarsals. “These ‘marching foot’ fractures used to be seen mainly in soldiers, but we are seeing more and more of these overuse injuries in people wearing flip flops for long periods of walking on hard surfaces,” explains Mrs Champlin.
Callous builds up much quicker, especially on your heels, when wearing open shoes such as sandals or flip flops, due to the exposure to the drying, moisture wicking atmosphere. Wearing socks within closed shoes also helps remove dead skin, which is why you may have noticed you’ve developed more hard skin when moving to Dubai from a colder climate such as in Europe, for example.
Tips for Choosing & Wearing Flop Flops
• Choose flip flops with thicker soles for better shock absorption. Flip flops (or any shoe) that fold in half will not provide much cushioning.
• Look for thick leather thongs on the flip flop that are less likely to chafe.
• Mrs Champlin recommends that you DO wear flip flops in areas where you are more prone to pick up viral (verrucas) or fungal (athlete’s foot) infections – moist or dark places such as changing rooms, poolside or on the dive boat.
• Limit flip flop wearing to shorter periods – such as to and from the beach. Avoid wearing them for longer periods of walking, such as around the mall.
• Never wear flip flops whilst running or playing sports – they provide no protection and raise the risk of sprain and injury.
• Replace your flip flops when you notice wear / tear or reduced cushioning. Normally every 3-4 months.
• Don’t forget sunscreen for your exposed feet! Mrs Champlin sees incidences of skin cancer on exposed areas of skin on the feet, an often forgotten area when applying sun screen and especially crucial in sunny climates such as the UAE.
If you are worried that you may have picked up a verruca, fungal infection, or are experiencing any kind of pain in your feet, contact the foot experts at Dubai Podiatry Centre on +971 4 3435390 for fast, friendly and expert help.
Written by Michelle Champlin BSc Pod., M.Ch.S., S.R., Ch., (UK)
Shin splints, despite the name, don’t necessarily affect the shin bone itself (or ‘tibia’). Shin splints is an ‘overuse’ injury to the shin area linked to exercise, particularly running. Along with knee issues, ankle sprains and bruised, damaged or lost toenails, it’s one of our most common running related issues we see in Dubai Podiatry Centre. Often, the pain is due to the muscle attaching to the tibia becoming inflamed. You may also hear shin splints being referred to as ‘medial tibial stress syndrome.’
What are shin splints?
Shin splints is a painful condition, most commonly felt at the front of your shin bone (tibia). Due either to the muscles at the insertion point into the shin becoming inflamed, or minor fractures to the shin bone itself.
Muscular shin splints
There are 2 types of muscular shin splints – anterior and posterior. Anterior shin splints affect the outside lower part of your leg. Posterior, the more common of the two, is muscular shin splints affect the lower inside leg. Continuing to exercise without seeking treatment can ultimately cause scar tissue to form.
Bone shin splints
This is actually much less common than muscular shin splints. It is caused by many tiny fractures of the surface of the tibia, resulting in the usual body response to bone fracture – pain and localised swelling. It can ultimately be more serious than muscular shin splints, as if left untreated, can ultimately lead to a more serious fracture of the tibia.
Causes
One or more of the factors below may cause shin splints. These include:
• Sudden increase in weight bearing activity (e.g. running)
• Calcium deficiency
• Previous leg injury or sprain
• Biomechanical issue (such as over-pronation)
• Incorrect running shoes
• Hard running surface / hill running
Treatment
For either bone or muscular shin splints, stop activity immediately and rest, advises Dubai Podiatry Centre’s Chief Podiatrist Michelle Champlin. Because athletes (most commonly runners) are frequently affected, we understand that this can be very difficult advice to stick to. But healing cannot take place if the area is subjected to repeat stress / strain. So avoid any activity that causes your shins to hurt. Try other forms of exercising that aren’t weight bearing such as the elliptical trainer in the gym or swimming. Follow RICE guidelines:
Rest: stop activity that causes shin pain
Ice: apply cool packs 3-5 times daily for 15-20 minutes
Compression – support the site with an elasticated support bandage
Elevation – keep your feet up to aid circulation and reduce swelling
See your Podiatrist as soon as possible. S(he) can assess and diagnose whether your pain is due to muscular or bone shin splints and advise a program of healing at home including RICE and specific strengthening and stretching exercises to rehabilitate. Bring your usual running shoes with you too for examination and recommendation for any footwear switch required, as incorrect footwear can contribute to shin splints. At Dubai Podiatry Centre, we carry out detailed lower limb biomechanics assessments – read here about what they involve and what to bring with you.
Prevention
Furthermore, the shin splints are frequently a warning sign of a lower limb biomechanical anomaly. Once you have recovered from the initial bout of shin splints, it is important that any anomaly is addressed and corrected, as otherwise the shin splints will likely recur and put you out of action again.
The Podiatrist may recommend a range of solutions including:
• Custom corrective orthotics to address any biomechanical issue (we make orthotics tailored for individual sports, including running)
• Running shoe recommendations (including frequent renewal)
• Gradual, tapered approach to building up exercise activity
• Strengthening / stretching exercise regime for the legs
The outlook is good for shin splint sufferers, whether you’re training for Wadi Bih, the Dubai Marathon or getting back into jogging. At Dubai Podiatry Centre, we understand that runners are keen to get back to running as soon as possible – we specialize in proactive, targeted therapy to get you back running, pain free, in record time.
Call the sports biomechanics podiatrists at Dubai Podiatry Centre on +971 4 3435390.
Written by Michelle Champlin BSc Pod., M.Ch.S., S.R., Ch., (UK)
Our feet are critical for most of us to do our jobs every day. Not only might they be squashed into various footwear for our jobs, but they might also be at risk from injury due to our working environment.
Your work may be office based – a lawyer in fashionable stilettoes, a banker in very tapered designer men’s dress shoes, cabin crew in high-heeled court shoes or an engineer in steel toe capped safety boots.
Your working environment might mean you’re standing and walking round building sites all day in sweaty, stiff safety boots, walking for kilometres through airports in high heels, or standing at exhibitions for 12-hour days.
The average person walks the equivalent of five times round the earth in their lifetime, and even when just walking up to two times your body weight travels through your foot and leg. Over the distances travelled and the sometimes extra hazards we face at work, Chief Podiatrist Michelle Champlin of Dubai Podiatry Centre helps us understand how to care for working feet.
Workplace hazards include long periods standing, walking, operating machinery, high heels or tapered shoes, falling objects and slippery surfaces.
Michelle Champlin says that a lot of the work-related injuries she sees in clinic can be prevented by wearing the right foot wear for the job, following a daily footcare routine and seeing a Podiatrist as soon as any injuries or pain occur.
We often hear ‘My feet hurt, I’ve got some blisters because I’m breaking my shoes in’ or ‘I need to wear these stilettoes to work, I can’t wear any other shoes as I need to look smart.’
Mrs. Champlin advises that ‘every day foot pain is not normal and shouldn’t be ignored. See a podiatrist if you’re experiencing any toenail, foot or leg pain that persists.’
Our expert podiatrists can also advise on footwear, including sizing and type of shoes that will help maintain healthy feet whatever your job. After all, incorrect footwear or an accident at work can ultimately lead to days off sick from work and long term foot issues.
Work Related Foot Problems
Jobs that involve standing or walking for long periods tend to be ‘biomechanical’ e.g. affect your foot, ankle or leg posture and involve your muscles, tendons, ligaments or bones. Pain can occur not just in your feet, but your legs, knees, hips, lower back and neck.
Common ailments include:
• Plantar fasciitis
• Hallux valgus (bunions)
• Collapsed transverse arches
• Metatarsalgia
• Metatarsal stress fracture
• Muscle cramps – calfs, lower back
Mrs. Champlin also reports a number of traumas that have occurred at work, including
• Loss of toenails due to heavy objects being dropped on the toe(s)
• Ingrown toenails due to previous toenail injury
• Ankle sprains due to slippery surfaces / machinery accidents
“I have seen many injuries ranging from cabin crew with toenail trauma due to suitcases being dropped on their feet, ankle sprains from falling at work and cuts, lacerations and bruises from standing on sharp objects like nails on building sites. We also see longer term injuries such as corns to the small toes from wearing work footwear that taper too tight at the toe box or plantar fasciitis in those in the armed forces, teachers and nurses
Tips for Working Feet
• Wear shoes that are appropriate for your job and working environment. “Different jobs have different requirements – nurses and chefs for example may need a well fitting, enclosed shoe with lots of cushioning. Site engineers will require sturdy steel toe capped boots to protect against trauma.”
• Wear safety footwear as advised by your employer / health & safety guidelines.
• Wear shoes that fit properly, allowing plenty of room in the toe box (1cm from longest toe to end of shoe). Avoid tight fitting tapered shoes or stilettoes.
• For women who must wear smart court style shoes – avoid very high heels and vary heel height daily. Designers including Ferragamo offer very smart low-heeled court shoes suitable for any office and other retail shops offer a variety of width fittings. Speak to your Podiatrist about which brands they recommend for your feet – every person is different and will find different brands comfortable.
• Wear shoes with a strap (such as a mary-jane style) or laces to hold the shoe to your foot and avoid it slipping around.
• Keep a spare pair of shoes at work or in your handbag. Wear a higher heel for meetings for example, and a lower pair for at your desk.
• Alternate footwear daily and and dry them out thoroughly between wears. Spray regularly with antifungal / antibacterial shoe spray or powder to prevent fungal spore build up and infections such as Athlete’s Foot.
• Wear steel toecaps if you work in heavy industry environments
• Adopt a simple daily foot care regime to keep callous and fungal infections away
• Speak to your Podiatrist about wearing protective silicone moisturizing, protective toe sleeving, forefoot sleeves or heel sleeves to protect within footwear from corn or bursa-causing friction.
Make an appointment with the foot experts at Dubai Podiatry Centre on +971 4 3435390 if you experience persistent foot pain or any work related foot injury – we’ll get you fit for work fast.