A stress fracture is a crack within your bone, and your feet, lower legs, and ankles are especially vulnerable to stress fractures because they support your entire body weight. The expert podiatrists at Garden State Foot & Ankle Specialists can usually help you heal with noninvasive treatments, as long as you seek help promptly. With convenient locations in Plainfield, Scotch Plains, Springfield, and Linden, New Jersey, you have an office nearby, so click the online scheduler or call the one nearest you today.
Stress fractures are hairline cracks within your bones. They’re typically caused by repetitive motion over time. Your lower body, particularly your feet and ankles, are the most common areas for stress fractures because these particular bones have to support your whole body when you stand, walk, and run.
If you suspect a stress fracture, reach out to the Garden State Foot & Ankle Specialists team right away for guidance. In the meantime, implement the RICE protocol:
If you avoid worsening the injury and get care quickly, you have a very good chance of a full recovery.
The Garden State Foot & Ankle Specialists team diagnoses stress fractures after considering your symptoms, reviewing your medical history, and conducting a physical exam. You may need to demonstrate certain movements so your podiatrist can assess the damage. Often, imaging tests such as X-rays or ultrasound confirm a stress fracture diagnosis.
Treatment depends on how serious your stress fracture is. The Garden State Foot & Ankle Specialists team may recommend some of the following noninvasive solutions.
It’s unlikely that you’ll need surgery for a stress fracture if you get treatment quickly. But, if your stress fracture doesn’t heal, it can become a more severe problem that requires surgical correction like pins, screws, and metal plate implantation.
While you can't always avoid repetitive motion, you can take some extra precautions, such as wearing proper protective gear when exercising and wearing supportive footwear at all times.
If you experience pain while exercising, for example, shin splints in your lower leg, it's important to stop and rest right away. Shin splints happen when your muscles partially detach from the tibia (shin bone). If you keep exercising with shin splints, you run the risk of stress fractures in your tibia.
Click the online booking tool or call the Garden State Foot & Ankle Specialists team to get stress fracture help now.
