Playing sports or exercising can expose your feet and ankles to additional uncommon forces and cause a stress fracture. Treating stress fractures are common at our office in Howell, Affiliated Foot and Ankle Center, LLP. Some typical causes for stress fractures can be: bad body mechanics, underlying medical conditions, poor weight distribution, weak or over used muscles, and/or the wrong foot wear. It is not an injury that only athletes suffer from; anyone can experience a stress fracture for no apparent reason.
A famous athlete by the name of Yao Ming has suffered from a stress fracture and could be a career ending injury. Yao Ming’s foot injury could threaten the seven-foot-six-inch player’s career. Ming fractured his left foot last month during a semifinal match against the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA Conference semifinals and has been visiting foot and ankle specialists since then. This injury is career threatening and currently sidelining the Chinese Center. The Houston Rockets team physician, Tom Clanton, was shocked when the results of the CT scan revealed a fracture. Ming has no symptoms of pain or tenderness, no swelling or edema, no redness or bruising. There is a high risk of putting Ming on the court could make the fracture worse and then taking him out of the game all together. Yao Ming has gained 20 kilos in his upper body the past seven years from weight lifting and training, but his lower body did not gain as much strength as his upper body to hold his large frame.
While rehabilitating from a stress fracture, it is critical to strengthen the ankle/foot muscles to prevent from further injury and take the stress off the bones. If a patient continues to put pressure on a stress fracture and it is left untreated, it will delay the healing process and also can cause further damage in the fracture.
At our office, we have a digital x-ray machine on site making it convenient for our patients instead of referring them off-site to another diagnostic testing center. We also can provide bone stimulators to promote the healing of a fracture. If you experience any type of foot or ankle pain, you should always seek medical assistance as soon as possible to prevent further damage from occurring.
