Ankle & Achilles
Ankle & Achilles pain
- Acute injuries – occur suddenly and include sprains, strains & fractures.
- Inside of the ankle – also known as medial ankle pain.
- Outside of the ankle – also known as lateral ankle pain.
- Achilles pain– and other injuries at the back of the ankle.
Calf Pain
Calf pain
These occur at the back of the lower leg and can be sudden onset (acute) or occur gradually over time (chronic).
- Calf strain – torn calf muscle at the back of the lower leg.
- Cramp – acute, sudden onset muscle spasm/contraction.
Shin pain
- Pain in the shin is usually of gradual onset and can be difficult to get rid of.
- Shin splints – is a widely used term to describe pain on the inside of the shin.
- Tibialis Anterior Tendonitis – causes pain on the outside front of the shin.
Our Treatment Approach
Lower leg and ankle pain is most commonly due to ankle soft tissue injuries, caused by muscle or ligament damage. Since ligaments do not heal well on their own, ankle instability quickly becomes a chronic, painful condition. It allows for destructive joint motions every time the ankle joint is used, wearing down the cartilage and causing further structural damage.
Our providers understand the need for rapid recovery to prevent the long-term damage of ankle soft tissue injuries. Therefore, we utilize Comprehensive S.T.A.R. Therapy to restore the muscle, ligament, and tendon integrity and strengthen the joint function. This prevents the continued cartilage degeneration through destructive joint motions and allows the ankle a chance to heal.
S.T.A.R. Therapy, in simple terms, stimulates the body to repair painful areas. It does so by inducing a localized, mild inflammatory reaction in the weakened ligament and tendon attachments. Since the body heals by inflammation, S.T.A.R. Therapy stimulates healing.
Our Treatment Approach ->
- Extracorporeal shock wave therapy improves the walking ability of patients with peripheral artery disease and intermittent claudication. Serizawa F, Ito K, Kawamura K, Tsuchida K, Hamada Y, Zukeran T, Shimizu T, Akamatsu D, Hashimoto M, Goto H, Watanabe T, Sato A, Shimokawa H, Satomi S. Japanese Circulation Journal (2012)
- Extra-corporeal pulsed-activated therapy (“EPAT” sound wave) for Achilles tendinopathy: a prospective study. Saxena A, Ramdath S Jr, O’Halloran P, Gerdesmeyer L, Gollwitzer H. The Journal of Foot & Ankle Surgery (2011)
- Eccentric loading versus eccentric loading plus shock-wave treatment for midportion Achilles tendinopathy: a randomized controlled trial. Rompe JD, Furia J, Maffulli N. American Journal of Sports Medicine (2009)
- Eccentric loading compared with shock wave treatment for chronic insertional achilles tendinopathy: a randomized, controlled trial. Rompe JD, Furia J, Maffulli N. The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (2008)
- Eccentric loading, shock-wave treatment, or a wait-and-see policy for tendinopathy of the main body of tendon Achillis: a randomized controlled trial. Rompe JD, Nafe B, Furia JP, Maffulli N. American Journal of Sports Medicine (2007)
- High-energy extracorporeal shock wave therapy as a treatment for insertional Achilles tendinopathy. Furia JP. The American Journal of Sports Medicine (2006)
- Shock wave therapy for chronic Achilles tendon pain: a randomized placebo-controlled trial. Costa ML, Shepstone L, Donell ST, Thomas TL. Clinical Orthopedics and Related Research (2005)
