deStress Your Fractures

Have you ever started a new, ambitious workout regimen that leaves your feet in a great amount of pain? This pain could be the result of a stress fracture. Stress fractures are commonly due to a repetitive motion that is exerting force onto the same location over and over again and the bone eventually gets a small fracture in it due to this stress. Stress fractures range in severity from very mild to a complete fracture of the bone. They will increase in severity the longer that you continue this repetitive motion on this bone.

The most common locations for you to get a stress fracture are the calcaneus (your heel bone) and the 2^nd metatarsal (the bone that is leading up to your 2^nd toe. These locations are common in people you begin to run after a long time of sedentary lifestyle and in people that run many miles a week.  They are also common in people who do work outs that include things like jumping rope or anything that is putting a great amount of stress on those bones due to absorbing your weight.

Stress fractures can be difficult to see on an X-ray because they can be so small. Don’t be fooled though, there small size can lead to big pain. Many times though, your description of the changes you’ve made in your daily routine will point your podiatrist to highly suspecting a stress fracture. Because of this, your podiatrist will often recommend that you should keep off of that affected area as much as possible and may even recommend that you immobilize the area to allow it to heal. Then in about 10 days, you may be asked to return to the office to take another x-ray to confirm the diagnosis and rule out any other conditions that could be causing your discomfort.

If you or someone you know has been experiencing pain in your foot, please call our office staff and they would be more than happy to help you set up an appointment. Our offices serve the Methuen, Lowell, North Andover, and Tewksbury, Massachusetts areas. It is important to remember than with any pain, it is best to find out the source early so that you can prevent greater injury resulting from continued stress.