Treatments
Treatment for foot and ankle problems
The right treatment depends on the right diagnosis. Non-surgical care comes first whenever it’s appropriate, and surgery is discussed when it will help — or when an injury or condition shouldn’t wait.
Our approach
A stepwise path of care
Step 1: Listen and examine
A detailed history and a hands-on examination of your foot, ankle and leg: alignment, motion, strength, skin, circulation, sensation, gait and footwear.
Step 2: Clarify the diagnosis
Weight-bearing X-rays and, only when they will change the plan, further imaging such as CT, MRI or ultrasound.
Step 3: Non-surgical care first
When appropriate: footwear, padding, orthotics or bracing, exercise and therapy, activity changes and medication — given a fair, time-limited trial.
Step 4: Surgery, when it’s the right step
Discussed when symptoms persist, or when an injury needs it. We explain the options, the risks and what to expect, including not operating.
Step 5: Recovery and follow-up
A clear plan for weight-bearing, rehabilitation and follow-up visits, with realistic timelines and a way to reach us if something worries you.
Non-surgical care
Where most treatment begins
Footwear and padding
Wider, lower-heeled shoes with a roomy toe box, supportive soles, and pads that take pressure off a bunion, a bent toe or a callus. Often the first and simplest step.
Orthotics and bracing
Custom or prefabricated inserts, or a brace, to support the arch, improve alignment, stabilize an ankle or take load off a painful joint.
Exercise and physical therapy
Stretching and strengthening for the calf, heel, arch and ankle, and balance training. Structured exercise is among the best-supported treatments for tendon problems and ankle sprains.
Activity changes and weight management
A temporary change in how you train, work or stand, to let an irritated structure settle while you stay as active as possible.
Medication and selected injections
Anti-inflammatory medicines for some conditions, and, in selected cases, an injection after discussing the likely benefits and risks. Some injections are not recommended near certain tendons.
Shockwave and immobilization
Shockwave therapy for some heel and tendon problems, and a boot, brace or cast to rest an injured tendon, ligament or bone.
Treating what’s behind the problem
Working with your other clinicians on factors such as blood-sugar control, circulation, inflammatory conditions or medicines that affect tendons.
Surgical care
When surgery may be the right step
- symptoms persist and affect daily life despite a well-tried course of non-surgical care
- the diagnosis is well supported by your history, examination and, when needed, imaging
- an injury or condition is unlikely to heal well, or is likely to worsen, without an operation — for example an unstable fracture or a deep infection
- the expected benefit clearly outweighs the risks for you
- you understand what recovery involves and what a realistic result looks like
Treatment guides
Toes and forefoot
Treatment
Bunion surgery
Osteotomy, Lapidus fusion and minimally invasive options: how bunion operations are chosen, what recovery involves and what studies show.
Treatment
Big-toe arthritis surgery
Operations for arthritis of the big toe joint, from removing bone spurs to fusing or replacing the joint.
Treatment
Hammertoe surgery
Tendon procedures, joint resection or fusion: how a bent toe is corrected, and what recovery involves.
Treatment
Minimally invasive surgery
Operations through very small incisions: where they’re used, what the studies show and how to tell whether they suit you.
Heel, arch and tendons
Treatment
Flatfoot reconstruction
A combination of tendon, ligament and bone procedures that rebuilds the arch and realigns the foot.
Treatment
Cavus foot surgery
Rebalancing the muscles and realigning the bones of a high-arched foot to relieve pain and improve stability.
Treatment
Gastrocnemius recession
Lengthening a tight calf muscle so the ankle can bend upward, relieving strain on the heel, arch and forefoot.
Treatment
Achilles tendon repair
Sewing a ruptured Achilles tendon back together, or treating a long-standing tendon problem, and what recovery involves.
Treatment
Haglund deformity surgery
Removing the bony bump on the back of the heel and cleaning up the inflamed tissue, open or with an endoscope.
Treatment
Peroneal tendon surgery
Repairing, transferring or reconstructing the tendons on the outer ankle, or tightening the band that holds them in place.
Ankle and midfoot
Treatment
Ankle ligament surgery
Tightening or rebuilding the outer ankle ligaments so an unstable ankle stops giving way.
Treatment
Ankle arthroscopy
A camera-guided operation through tiny incisions to look inside the ankle and treat impingement, loose bodies and cartilage injuries.
Treatment
Ankle cartilage repair
Operations that treat damaged cartilage on the ankle bone, from arthroscopic microfracture to grafts and cultured cells.
Treatment
Fracture surgery
When a broken ankle or foot needs an operation, how bones are held while they heal, and what recovery involves.
Treatment
Lisfranc surgery
Realigning and stabilizing the middle of the foot after a Lisfranc injury, with screws or plates, or by fusing the joints.
Treatment
Fusion and joint replacement
How fusing or replacing a worn-out joint works, where each is used in the foot and ankle, and how they compare.
Before and after surgery
Treatment
Non-surgical care
Footwear, inserts, exercise, medication, injections and shockwave: how conservative care works and when to reassess.
Treatment
Preparing for surgery
Medical evaluation, smoking and diabetes, anesthesia, pain control, blood clots and getting your home ready.
Treatment
Recovery after surgery
Weight-bearing, swelling, timelines by operation, driving, work and the warning signs to watch for.
Appointments
Talk with us about your foot or ankle
An evaluation can clarify what’s causing your symptoms and what your options are — starting with non-surgical care whenever that’s appropriate, and discussing surgery only when it makes sense for you.