What is turf toe? Turf toe is a type of sports injury that occurs in athletes with a lot of pushing off or changes in direction in their sport. Anatomically, turf toe is a hyperextension injury of the joint of the big toe. Essentially, the toe is forced past its normal range of motion. Unfortunately, this results in injury of the joint and tissues around it. How does it happen? The big toe is one of the most important joints for generating speed and power in our lower body. When we land on or push off from a surface, the…

What is the Achilles tendon? The Achilles tendon is one of the strongest tendons in the human body. Anatomically, it connects our calf muscles to the back of the heel bone. Its main action is to point the toes and ankle downwards when our foot is off the ground or raise the heel off the ground when our foot is on the ground. Functionally, it is used whenever we are engaged in walking, running, or hopping-like activities and helps us with force production and shock absorption. The tendon is extremely strong and can withstand high amounts of stress Unfortunately, this can also predispose it to injury and cause ankle pain. Stages of Achilles tendon injuries Diagram showing the different stages of Achilles tendon problems 1) Achilles tendinitis: Inflammation has developed or is developing in the tendon. 2) Achilles tendinosis: There is now degeneration along with or…

Orthotics Orthotics are specially designed equipment that provide support to the feet and ankles to improve your lower body’s alignment. Since the body is all interconnected, misalignment at the feet can lead to compensation at the knees, hips, and lower back and contribute to pain and dysfunction in those areas. Thus, orthotics are a great tool to help correct this and alleviate pain and discomfort in the body. In this blog, we will go over how they work and how they can improve your quality of life. 1. Relieving Pain with Orthotics [caption id=”attachment_6107″ align=”alignnone”…

Chronic Ankle Instability Ankle sprains are one of the most common injuries. Rest, ice, compression and elevation, or the RICE rule, are the go-tos for ankle sprains. In most cases, the ankle will heal between 4-12 weeks. Many people will allow the ankle to heal on its own but a failure to seek treatment and physical rehabilitation for the ankle after just one injury is enough to leave it weaker and more vulnerable to future sprains. Which in turn could result in chronic ankle instability. What causes ankle instability? After an ankle injury, there is damage…

What is Massage Therapy? Massage Therapy, provided by a Registered Massage Therapist includes manipulation of soft tissues of the body. These soft tissues may include muscles, tendons, fascia, ligaments, and connective tissue. The therapist will use a variety of different massage techniques and provide pressure to alleviate pain, discomfort, and stress. For example, some of the most popular massage therapy techniques include deep tissue massage, Swedish massage, trigger point release, and myofascial release. How was massage created? The concept of therapeutic touch and a healing touch in relation to massage therapy can be dated back in time to over 5 000 years ago. It was found to relieve pain, help to heal, reduce stress and increase relaxation.  Historically, in China, these methods were thought to fix the flow of energy throughout the body and realign the body’s natural state. However, in India, it was practiced as a sacred method of…

What is heel pain? What causes your heel pain? Heel pain could be from any reason either your inflamed plantar fascia causing plantar fasciitis or any abnormal bony growth causing heel spurs. To get in further details plantar fasciitis is an irritation and inflammation to the tissue that runs at the bottom of the foot extending from the heel to the toes, causing heel pain. It supports the arch of the foot which helps in shock absorption. On other side, heel spur is when a bony outgrowth forms on the heel, which causes heel pain while walking and standing. What are the causes of heel pain? Causes are not limited to high and low arches causing irritation to the plantar fascia with running, jogging, playing any sports, prolonged standing and walking. Also, any strain or tear to the fascia. As a result, if this condition is…

A An ankle sprain is a common Sports injury which happens when the ankle stretches more than normal. This over stretch weakens the ligaments that hold the bones together. Ligaments are the fibrous bands that hold the ankle joint together. The ankle consists of 3 joints. The joints are between the lower end of two long bones in your leg. They are called the Tibia and Fibula. They attach to the two bones in your feet called the Talus and calcanium. Together with the muscles and ligaments, the bony ends on the sides of your long bones called malleoli provide…

Acute Ankle Sprains Acute Ankle Sprains How do Acute Ankle Sprains happen? Acute Ankle sprains are common injuries in people of all ages. They can happen in many different circumstances. However, they always involve some type of fall or twisting movement to the ankle. For example: Going downstairs and missing the last step resulting in twisting the ankle Landing on the ankle in a twisted position after coming down from a lay-up in basketball or in a Sports Injury Slipping on an icy street while walking In all of these situations, the ankle gets a sudden movement and/or trauma that causes it to twist more than its normal range of movement allows. Acute Ankle Sprains What structure gets injured with an acute ankle sprain? The structures that are injured with acute ankle sprains are the ligaments around the ankle joint. Ligaments are…

Fracture Treatments Mississauga, Etobicoke & Oakville _ PhysioNow Fracture types Fracture Rehabilitation Fractures are common injuries .  They can happen to people of all ages, from the very young to the very old.  The majority of fractures occur with trauma to the bone.  It could be  either from a fall or a blunt force.  Most people can readily feel that they have a broken bone. This is because the signs and symptoms can be very obvious. Some of these indicators of Fracture are: Swelling or bruising over a bone Deformity of an arm or leg Pain that gets worse with any movement or added pressure Inability to put any weight through the injured area Protruding bone through the skin (in the case of open fractures) In some cases, however, fractures can be less obvious.  Some ankle fractures may look a lot like ankle sprains. You may…

Heat and Cold therapy How it works When we apply Heat therapy, it improves circulation and blood flow to  that area due to increased temperature. Heat therapy can relax and soothe muscles and heal damaged tissue. Types Dry Heat therapy includes sources like heating pads, dry heating packs, and even saunas. This heat is easy to apply. Moist Heat therapy includes sources like steamed towels, moist heating packs, Theratherm heating pads that take moisture from the air, or hot baths. Moist heat may be slightly more effective as well as require less application time for the same results. Contraindications diabetes dermatitis vascular diseases deep vein thrombosis multiple sclerosis (MS)  Heat is useful for relieving: osteoarthritis strains and sprains tendonitis, or chronic irritation and stiffness in the tendons warming up stiff muscles or tissue before activity relieving pain or spasms relating to neck or back injury, including the lower back Cold…