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State-of-the-art Treatments for Foot Pain

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Published: 08Jul2008
Word count: 488
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Before I start, I want to reiterate the fact that pain is NEVER normal. If your feet or ankles hurt, there is usually a reason. Some common reasons may include poor shoes, infections, injuries or strained or torn tendons or ligaments. Understanding and fixing the cause of the pain, or making adjustments to alleviate the pain over time is often possible. What I want to discuss is a new treatment that allows correction of pain that is not alleviated through standard treatments.

Topaz Radiocoblation/Microdebridement treatment is a minimally invasive surgical procedure utilized to treat chronic foot pain from tendon or ligament abnormalities. For years, chronic pain to tendons or ligaments that didn't resolve with conservative treatments including rest, stretching, bracing, oral or topical medicine or injections often lead to aggressive surgical procedures with long periods of recovery. Topaz Radiocoblation now provides a minimally invasive procedure that won't compromise the mechanical structures of the foot caused by traditional surgical techniques. Recovery is also quick and easy without the need for splints, casts, walking boots or physical therapy. In fact, a patient will usually return to shoes within 4-5 days, often with significant improvement of pain.

Topaz Radiocoblation is performed either through small incisions or through small "pin holes" (percutaneous) and often allows rapid return to regular shoegear and activities. This procedure utilizes a small wand that produces radiofrequency waves within the tendon or ligament to stimulate new blood vessel formation (neoangiogenesis), migration of growth factors, decreased inflammation, decreased pain and ligamentous or tendinous repair. This procedure is commonly performed on plantar fasciitis or Achilles tendonitis, and has been shown to be 80-90% effective at resolving pain from these entities.

The effectiveness of this procedure can also be improved through the addition of platelet-rich plasma injected locally. During the procedure, a small amount of blood can be drawn from the patient and concentrated to allow a large combination of proteins, growth factors, platelets and healing cells to be directly injected in treated tendons or ligaments to further speed the recovery process.

Platelet-rich plasma or PRP has been utilized for years to treat wounds and stimulate healing in areas that were previously difficult to heal. By adding this treatment to the already effective Topaz procedure, the probability of healing increases to 90% or above. Theses results were not possible with previous treatment modalities.

Although these treatments are state-of-the-art when it comes to foot pain treatment, they have been used for years by orthopedic surgeons in treating tendons elsewhere. They likewise found good success with these treatments.

So remember, your pain is not normal. You don't have to continue to suffer with foot pain, even when previous conservative treatments have failed. You now have a new technique to alleviate your pain and return you more quickly back to regular activities. You deserve to walk without pain. You deserve the opportunity to continue to enjoy life.

Brandt R. Gibson, DPM, MS is a podiatrist in American Fork, Utah. His goal is to educate people and help them "optimize what they were born with." For further educational materials and recommended medical products, visit his website at http://www.UtahFootDoc.com . A free book on foot and ankle health can also be ordered at http://www.MyFeetHurtBook.com .

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