A podiatrist, known as a doctor of podiatric medicine (DPM), is a licensed and trained medical professional that treats issues with the foot, ankle, and lower leg. They help your feet and ankles work the way they should, help reduce pain, and help to speed up the healing process after an injury or surgery.
Podiatrists evaluate issues with the feet and ankles, set fractures, treat wounds, recommend physical therapy, and do surgery when it is needed. Podiatrists also:
- Treat conditions with the foot like arch problems, heel spurs, bone disorders, cysts, shortened tendons, and corns.
- Refer patients to the appropriate medical professional when they feel foot issues are related to other disorders in other body systems.
- Teach patients about preventative foot care.
- Diagnose problems with the feet like ulcers, tumors, skin and nail diseases, and congenital (at-birth) deformities.
- Make casts for foot and ankle injuries.
5 Reasons to See a Podiatrist
Our feet take the brunt of our physical daily activities, acting as shock absorbers for everything we do during the course of the day. If you are experiencing pain or discomfort with your feet or ankles, it’s probably time to see a podiatrist in Thousand Oaks. Podiatrists treat patients of all ages and backgrounds.
Below are 5 reasons you should see a podiatrist sooner, rather than later.
1. A podiatrist is a foot and ankle specialist. They only treat feet and ankles. Other specialists may perform surgery on other areas of the body, but only a podiatric foot and ankle surgeon is specialized to exclusively perform surgery on the bones, muscles, joints, skin structures, and nerves of the feet and ankles. They also perform non-surgical treatments for sprains, strains, breaks, and other issues with the feet.
2. A podiatrist is a physician. For specialty shoes or inserts, or any other issues with your feet, you need someone with a medical degree that specializes in foot and ankle care. A podiatrist is the only medical professional that has the in-depth training to prescribe the proper treatment for your foot condition.
3. A podiatrist treats emergency foot conditions. When you find yourself in the ER with an injured foot or ankle, the emergency room will often call in an urgent care podiatrist to treat your injury because it is more efficient to be seen by a specialist right away. An urgent care foot doctor, like those at Urgent Care for Feet in Thousand Oaks, CA, see patients experiencing foot and ankle emergencies in the office without long wait times, and at a much lower cost than an emergency room visit.
4. A podiatrist is a specialized medical professional who can prescribe medications and perform surgery. If you have a wound on your foot, the podiatrist is the doctor to see. The skin on the foot is very close to the bone. Diabetics or people with poor circulation are especially prone to getting infections that go into the bone. A podiatrist is trained to treat wounds on the feet, and can refer patients to a wound center when necessary. They can treat infections with antibiotics and perform urgent or emergency surgery if needed.
5. A podiatrist is the first choice for foot and ankle medical care. A dentist knows teeth. An optometrist knows eyes. A baker knows breads and cakes. People know best what they do the most. Podiatrists attend medical school and residency to get their license as physicians and surgeons who specialize in foot and ankle care. They dedicate their careers to treating foot and ankle problems in the best, most integrative way possible based on medical science.
At Urgent Care for Feet, our clinics are staffed by board certified podiatrists. We can treat 90% of the foot and ankle cases seen in an emergency room for a fraction of the cost. We provide on site x-rays designed specifically for foot and ankle. This will avoid re-taking an x-ray done improperly at an ER or standard Urgent Care. Our clinics will be able to provide you with the correct casting or bracing needed for your foot or ankle injury. We can provide immediate treatment for all infections including any needed procedure and or antibiotic. We can repair or correct all lacerations, wounds or cuts of the foot and ankle. Your follow up will be with the same foot and ankle specialist. We combine clinical expertise, with care and convenience, to help patients whose foot and ankle conditions are urgent or serious, but not life-threatening.
