Arthritic Joints

Rheumatiod and Osteoarthritis

Both Osteoarthritis and Rheumatoid arthritis cause inflammation of joints, giving rise to pain when walking. Fitter Feet for Life can provide treatments for both forms of arthritis to help alleviate pain and improve your quality of life. Click one of the buttons for more information.

Osteoarthritis (OA)

What is it?

Osteoarthritis (OA) is often referred to as a “degenerative joint disease,” which usually develops slowly over time.

Gradually, cartilage on the surface of the joint starts to get damaged and wears away. Osteoarthritis of the foot and ankle joints causes difficulty and pain when walking.

How do I know if I have OA?

If any of the statements below apply to you, you might be suffering from OA, and you should discuss these with your Diane Nicholl, Podiatric Surgeon at Fitter Feet for Life.

  • I frequently experience stiffness in my joints after resting or when I wake up
  • My joint is tender or sore after overuse
  • I feel pain in my joints when I move
  • Getting up from a chair, out of a car, or going up or down stairs is difficult
  • I hear a crackling sound in my joints when I move
  • I experience a grating feeling in my joints when I move
  • The area around my joint is red and swollen
  • I am unable to do or enjoy certain activities because of pain or stiffness in my joints
  • I feel less coordinated due to pain or stiffness in my joints
  • I have noticed that the muscles close to my painful joint are not as strong as they used to be

Injections to reduce arthritic pains.

Injections, which can give pain relief for up to a year are available to reduce arthritic pains caused by:

  • Ankle arthritis
  • Subtalar joint arthritis.
  • Midfoot arthritic joints
  • Big toe arthritis

Two types of injection are available

  • Steroid injections – These reduce inflammation and help with pain.
  • Durolane injections – Durolane contains hyaluronic acid (HA). Durolane injections can reduce pain for up to a year.

Osteoarthritis and Hyaluronic acid (HA)

Hyaluronic Acid in your joints is continuously broken down and replaced over time

  • When you have OA, HA becomes diluted and breaks down faster. This is associated with increased inflammatory processes that can degrade the cartilage in your joints.
  • The pain caused by inflammation limits movement, which in turn can lead to further deterioration of the joint.

What is HA?

HA is fluid found naturally throughout the human body. It is an important component of synovial fluid (joint fluid). The synovial fluid allows joints to move easily and freely while also absorbing the shock of daily activity. In a healthy joint, HA helps to protect bones and other joint tissues from injury and disease.

How can Fitter Feet for Life help?

HA can be injected into the affected joints to provide pain relief if you are suffering from pain due to OA.

Fitter Feet for Life provide injections of DUROLANE, a single-injection treatment of HA from Bioventus Coöperatief U.A. which acts like a lubricant and shock absorber in the synovial fluid. A DUROLANE injection may cushion your joint and manage your symptoms.

What are the benefits of DUROLANE?

As early as 2 weeks after an injection, DUROLANE can reduce OA joint pain and improve the physical activity and quality of life of OA patients.

Some patients have pain relief lasting up to 12 months.

Is DUROLANE right for me?

If you suffer from OA and are not getting enough pain relief from oral medications, physical therapy or steroids, speak with Diane Nicholl, Podiatric Surgeon at Fitter Feet for Life. She will help you decide whether DUROLANE might be right for you.

Is there any reason why I couldn’t have a DUROLANE injection?

You should not use DUROLANE if you have infections or skin disease at the injection site. DUROLANE has not been tested in pregnant or lactating women, or children. Diane Nicholl will discuss with you any possible reasons for not having an injection.

You can also see full indication and contraindication at DUROLANE.com.

Bioventus, the Bioventus and the DUROLANE logo are registered trademarks of Bioventus LLC.

Rheumatoid Arthritis

What is it?

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a condition that causes inflammation in many joints of the body. Unlike osteoarthritis which is caused by wear and tear, rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory disease where a faulty immune system attacks the tissue that lines and cushions the joints, leaving them swollen, painful and stiff.

This condition particularly affects the hands, feet, wrists, ankles and knees -and tends to occur symmetrically. That is, if your right big toe joint is swollen and painful, chances are, your left one is too. But RA can also affect other organs. As well as joint pain and stiffness, symptoms include muscle aches, anaemia (a low blood count, leaving you feeling tired) and fever. The stiffness tends to be worse in the morning and after rest.

Who gets it?

Women are three times more likely than men to get it and it tends to affect people between the ages of 30 and 50.

Is it serious?

The severity of the symptoms vary from person to person. According to the Arthritis Research Campaign. About 1 in every 20 will have RA that becomes progressively worse leading to severe damage in a lot of joints while around 1 in 5 will have mild RA that causes few problems, beyond a little pain and stiffness.

How does rheumatoid arthritis affect the feet?

RA affects the smaller joints such as the fingers and toes first, so feet are often one of the first places to be affected. Symptoms usually strike the toes first and may then affect the back of the feet and the ankles. The joints may enlarge and even freeze in one position, so they can’t extend fully.

  • Front of the foot The metatarsal-phalangeal joints are often affected (where the long bones of the feet meets the toes), and can result in Hallux valgus (a condition in which the big toe is angled excessively towards the second toe) and hammer toe deformities (where the toes curl up in a claw-like shape). Each of these deformities can cause further problems, for example, if you have hammer toes, you’ll be more likely to develop corns on the tops of your toes.
  • Midfoot If the joints in the middle of the foot are affected, the arch can collapse leading to a flatfoot deformity and spreading of the forefoot (where the front section of the foot becomes wider). The fatty pads on the balls of the feet may slip forward, causing pain on the balls of the feet and backs of the toes. If this happens, it can feel as if you are walking on stones.
  • Back of the foot If the joint where the heel bone meets the ankle (the joint that lets you rotate your ankle) is affected, it can lead to a condition known as valgus hindfoot (where the heel bends outwards), making it difficult to walk.

Any kind of foot deformity will cause an uneven distribution of pressure as you walk, making you more likely to develop corns, calluses and ulcers.

You may also get rheumatoid nodules – fleshy lumps that usually occur below the elbows but can appear on the hands and feet too. They may form over bony areas such as the heels and occur in 30 to 40 percent of people with rheumatoid arthritis.

What can a podiatrist do?

There are many things a podiatrist can do to make walking less painful:

  • Orthoses These are a special type of insole that can be fitted into your shoes. They will help you walk in such a way to minimise the pressure on your affected joints.
  • Shoes As well as a moulded insole, your podiatrist will help you find shoes that are roomy enough to accommodate your foot – and orthoses – without adding unnecessary pressure. If your toes are beginning to stiffen or curl, for example, it’s important for you to wear a shoe with an extra deep toe box. Your podiatrist may make a plaster of Paris copy of your foot, so a shoe can be tailored to your exact foot shape.
  • Protective shields They can also provide protective shields for your toes or padding to relieve pressure and reduce friction.
  • Surgery Surgery can correct any bunions and hammertoes caused by RA. If your joint cartilage has been completely destroyed and the joints in your foot have been dislocated to the extent that it’s extremely painful to walk, they can be fused together (a process known as arthrodesis). This involves removing the joint cartilage (the substance that allows the bones to glide over each other). The bones are then held together with screws, plates or a rod. The bones eventually merge into one solid bone. Although this results in a loss of movement in that particular joint, it can reduce pain.
  • Secondary problems Any secondary problems such as ulcers or corns that have been caused by foot deformities can also be treated.

Joints Arthritis information sheet

Download and view our joints arthritis information sheet (pdf document).