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Do You Need a Podiatrist?
By Michael Nirenberg, DPM
Not everyone goes to the doctor when they have a medical problem, and when many people do go, they don't always seek out the best trained doctor for their problem. Today, medicine is very specialized. There are entire medical journals and textbooks for every part of the body: head, stomach, veins, and yes, feet. That is where podiatrists come in.
What is a Podiatrist?
Podiatrists or Doctors of Podiatric Medicine (DPM) are physicians who specialize in the treatment of foot and ankle problems. Most podiatrists have spent at least three or four years studying the basic sciences in a university or college after graduating high school, then studied four more years at a school of podiatric medicine, and then most go on to do foot and ankle residencies for two to three additional years or in some cases, even more.
What Kinds of Problems Do Podiatrist Treat?
Podiatrists treat all problems related to the foot or ankle, and the length is endless. However, the more common problems I see are heel pain, arch pain, ingrown toe nails, bunions (bumps on the inside of the big toe), hammertoes (bent toes), flat feet, foot or ankle arthritis, fungal toe nails, sores (ulcers), infections, sprains and fractures, ankle pain or weakness, nerve problems and neuropathy (numbness, burning, or tingling), shin splints, gout, athlete's foot, sports medicine and diabetics foot problems, children's foot problems, swelling or discoloration, plantar warts, dry skin, and moles, cysts or tumors.
When Should I Call a Podiatrist?
Some aches and pains in our feet or ankles may go away in a day in a two; others do not, and that is when you need to go to a podiatrist. Many people who see me for a painful foot or ankle have had pain for several days or weeks, but some have been limping around for several months or even over a year! Pain is the body's way of telling us something is wrong. Don't ignore it.
Some people with foot or ankle problems never have pain. For example, diabetics who have neuropathy (a deterioration of the nerves of their feet) may fracture a bone or develop an infection or sore on their foot and not have any pain. Recently, I had a patient with diabetes come to see me complaining of a small sore on the bottom of their foot; an x-ray revealed a needle inside the foot. Because the patient had very little feeling in their feet they didn't know they had stepped on anything sharp.