Your feet and ankles form the foundation of your ability to stand, walk or run – all functions important to daily living. When you’re not able to live independently or enjoy your favorite sports or hobbies, foot and ankle pain can have a tremendous effect on your life.
At The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus, Ohio, our orthopedic foot and ankle specialists are here to assist you if you’ve had an injury or fracture to your ankle or foot. Or maybe you’re an athlete experiencing pain, swelling or issues moving your ankles, feet or toes. Our sports medicine doctors and foot and ankle surgeons provide world-class, comprehensive care and treat a wide range of conditions, whether you need nonsurgical options, such as physical therapy or bracing, or your injury is more serious and requires surgery.
Our foot and ankle specialists work collaboratively with experts in podiatry, too, so no matter what’s causing your foot pain, we’ve got you covered.
What causes pain in the ankles or feet?
Our experts treat many conditions related to ankle, foot or heel pain, especially those that are related to sports. Some of the more common issues we see include:
- Achilles tendon ruptures (tears) or chronic Achilles tendon pain
- Ankle sprains, including high-ankle sprains
- Ankle instability (frequent sprains)
- Bone spurs
- Simple or complex fractures (broken bones)
- Ankle arthritis
- Cartilage injuries
- Bunions
- Flat feet
- High arches
- Chronic exertional compartment syndrome, when leg muscles swell and create pain and pressure
- Any other sports-related injury to the foot and ankle, including sprains, strains and tears of ligaments and tendons
We’re often able to help people with persistent pain and foot deformities who haven’t gotten better with other surgeries. We can provide a fresh perspective and treatment options, including revision surgery.
Orthopedic surgeon: Most common foot and ankle injuries
Kevin Martin, DO, an orthopedic surgeon, describes the most common foot and ankle injuries he sees in his practice, including ankle instability and Achilles tendon issues.
When should I go to a foot and ankle specialist for my pain?
While podiatrists and foot and ankle doctors treat some of the same conditions, you should make an appointment with an orthopedic foot and ankle specialist if you experience one of these issues:
- A sports-related injury with symptoms that don’t improve after a few days
- Fractures to the foot or ankle
- Arthritis in the foot and ankle, especially from overuse, with symptoms affecting your ability to play sports or live your daily life
- Muscle, bone or tendon problems, such as recurrent ankle sprains
- Achilles tendon tears and injuries
What sports-related injuries lead to foot and ankle pain?
Roughly 30% of all sports injuries occur in the foot or ankle, making them very common issues for athletes of all ages and types. Sports like football, basketball, running and pickleball have a high incidence of foot and ankle injuries.
Some of the most common injuries we treat and see from athletes are heel pain and Achilles tendon ruptures. Our foot and ankle specialists have high success rates in treating these conditions and getting you back on the field quickly and safely.
Bringing high-level athlete back to competition after ankle injury
Melayna was an Irish dancer competing at a high level, but she'd been sidelined by a serious ankle injury. Thanks to the skill of orthopedic surgeon Kevin Martin, DO, and the advanced techniques and technology available at Ohio State, she was able to return to a high level of competition.
How do you diagnose foot and ankle pain?
You’ll see one of our board-certified, fellowship-trained orthopedic foot and ankle surgeons or an experienced advanced practice provider to begin the diagnostic process. This process includes a thorough history and physical exam and, if needed, imaging such as an X-ray done in our facility during your appointment. Your provider may order additional testing, such as:
- Magnetic resonance imaging
- Computed tomography scans
- Ultrasounds
- Lab testing
Your treatment is tailored to your condition based on our findings from these tests. Our foot and ankle team works as a cohesive unit to help you from diagnosis to treatment and through recovery. Our therapy teams not only help with rehabilitation but can also provide a full gait analysis through our Endurance Athlete Performance Program to evaluate those who want to improve their running form or posture.
How can you treat foot and ankle pain and injuries?
Our sports medicine and orthopedics teams have a variety of treatment methods to help you. What treatments we recommend will depend on factors such as your condition, the severity of your injury and your return-to-activity goals.
Nonsurgical treatment
Unless you’re involved in a traumatic injury affecting your foot or ankle, most people will start with nonsurgical treatments to see if their symptoms improve. Those nonoperative treatments include:
- Physical therapy
- Sports orthobiologics, such as platelet-rich plasma injections
- Injection therapy, such as steroid injections (including ultrasound-guided injections)
- Dry needling
- Lifestyle modification, such as rest, reduced activity and sports nutrition analysis
Surgical treatment
If nonsurgical methods don’t provide relief, or if your injury is more serious, foot and ankle surgery can be a good option for recovery. Some of the types of surgery our foot and ankle surgeons perform include:
- Chronic ankle instability surgery – A severe sprain or frequent sprains can cause significant damage that requires ligament reconstruction to stabilize the ankle and prevent arthritis. When we use this surgical technique with our early accelerated rehabilitation, we’ll have you back in the game in weeks, instead of months.
- Achilles tendon rupture repair – This minimally invasive procedure involves making a small incision near the injury, using a device to latch onto the torn Achilles tendon and pull it back into place. Then, stitches under the skin anchor the tendon back into the heel and plastic screws that absorb over time help hold it in place while it heals. We use this repair technique on many athletes, including Ohio State Buckeyes.
- Total ankle replacement – In this joint replacement surgery (arthroplasty), the surgeon replaces the injured joint with artificial parts made of metal, plastic or other materials.
- Bunion correction – This minimally invasive procedure involves only a few small incisions, which allows you to bear weight and return to shoes earlier.
- Surgery for complex fractures – Sometimes when you break a bone, it can require surgery to fix. Often, this surgery is an open reduction internal fixation, which helps facilitate the healing process.
- Revision surgery – This is a term for a group of surgeries that help fix complications from previous surgeries. Our foot and ankle team excels at providing second opinions.
- Fusion surgery – When your pain is caused by bone-on-bone scraping when you move, you might need this type of surgery, which fuses together bone tissue using screws or other devices.
Rehabilitation following foot and ankle surgery
After you have foot and ankle surgery, your care at the Ohio State Wexner Medical Center will continue, as our specialized rehabilitation team will guide you throughout your recovery.
In many cases, we’re able to offer early accelerated rehabilitation, which uses innovative techniques to help you recover faster. We often have you up and walking the same day as your surgery. For example, people who have minimally invasive Achilles tendon repair surgery with us often finish their rehabilitation in six weeks, compared to the three months with traditional treatment.
Foot and ankle surgeon brings military mindset of service, innovation to his patients
On the front lines or at the 40-yard line, Kevin Martin, DO, is transforming orthopedic care.
Why choose Ohio State for treatment of ankle and foot injuries?
The foot and ankle team at the Ohio State Wexner Medical Center is a national leader in providing compassionate and innovative care to get people, especially athletes, back to enjoying their lives. Our program has many highlights, including that:
- We provide comprehensive, collaborative care. Each person receiving care for their foot and ankle pain is given an extensive and personalized treatment plan that may include rehabilitation services, nonoperative sports medicine care, sports nutrition, surgery or podiatric services. Our multidisciplinary approach to foot and ankle care allows us to tailor therapies, while treating the whole person and working to prevent injuries in the future.
- We truly are experts. Our foot and ankle surgeons are board certified and provide exclusive care to all Buckeye athletes and many neighboring universities. Our surgeons speak around the world on the innovative care we offer, and are nationally ranked, including being listed as Castle Connolly Top Doctors and Avant-garde Health Top 5% Orthopedic Foot and Ankle Surgeons.
- We’ll get you back to sports and activities sooner. Using leading-edge technology and the latest advancements, we’re able to get you back on the playing field quickly and safely, often cutting recovery times in half. Our minimally invasive procedures and early accelerated rehabilitation protocols are very effective.
- We’re constantly innovating. Through our research efforts, we’re able to push the envelope on what we can offer people with foot and ankle pain. We also always welcome people looking for a second opinion, as we often can provide treatment options not always available elsewhere.
- We lead with service and compassion. Both of our orthopedic foot and ankle surgeons have over 20 years of service in the U.S. Army, including combat service and leadership experience. Through our work with the Military Medicine Program and in our daily practice, honor, respect and selfless service remain our core values as we serve all of Buckeye nation.