Podiatry

People with diabetes have a greater risk of developing foot complications due to possible changes to the circulation and/or sensation of your feet.

We recommend having your feet assessed at least once a year by a health care practitioner.

During this assessment, we’ll do a simple test to assess your blood circulation, check the sensations in your feet and make sure that there are no skin lesions that need treating. We’ll tell you about appropriate footwear and safely managing your feet. After the assessment, we’ll give you a foot risk rating which will indicate what type of treatment you need.

If you have a foot ulceration or an acute infection, we’ll refer you to the diabetes teams at Wycombe and Stoke Mandeville hospitals.

We see patients with:

• rheumatoid arthritis
• degenerative inflammatory rheumatic conditions
• connective tissue disorders such as scleroderma.

Treatment focuses on maintaining your mobility, reducing pain and preventing breakdown of high risk pressure areas of your feet.

We also prescribe Insoles and orthotics to cushion, correct or deflect pressure from uncomfortable joints or soft tissue areas. This may also involve referral for custom made footwear.

We also offer annual foot health reviews.

We assess musculoskeletal conditions of the feet and legs including:

• bunions
• forefoot neuroma
• knee problems associated with poor foot posture
• tendonitis due to overuse.

We also see children who have developmental gait problems. Gait is a person’s pattern of walking which includes balance and coordination.

Gait problems include:

• intoeing gait (turning your feet in when you walk, also called ‘pigeon toe’)
• tiptoe gait (walking on your toes)
• painful flat feet.

Treatment often includes specialist insoles or orthoses tailored to your child’s feet.

Insoles offer a combination of support and cushioning. We prescribe custom-made orthoses for more complex conditions.

We assess patients with ingrowing toenails to decide if they’re suitable for nail surgery.

During the procedure, we’ll remove the nail partially or fully. We use a local anaesthetic  and the procedure usually takes about an hour. You can return to work the next day.

Nail surgery will prevent the treated nail from regrowing.

These are for patients with problems such as painful corns, callus and medical conditions that put your feet ‘at risk.’

We’ll offer you an appointment at a clinic nearest to your home. We’ll discuss the most effective treatment for your problem. This may include ongoing regular appointments or a course of 1 or 2 appointments. We’ll also make sure you can continue with any self care measures and advice we may give you.

You can refer yourself or get a referral from your GP, consultant or other health professional.

The following exercises may help you depending on your condition. Please check with your consultant or healthcare professional before doing these exercises.

Watch this video to help strengthen your tibialis anterior muscles

Watch this video to help strengthen your peroneal muscles

Watch this video to help strengthen your posterior tibialis muscle and tendon muscles

Watch this video to help strengthen your gastrocnemius muscles

Watch this video for non-insertional achilles tendinopathy exercises

Watch this video for insertional achilles tendinopathy exercises