Doc On The Run Podcast

Can MRI miss a plantar plate strain?

Plantar plate injuries are very common, and they are extremely annoying. 
 
I get lots of questions and comments both from the podcast and from the Doc On The Run YouTube channel about plantar plate sprains. 

Today's episode comes from a question posted by Jason on the Doc On The Run YouTube channel. He asked...

"Can MRI miss a plantar plate strain?” 

The short answer is yes, and I'm going to try to explain why.
 
Can an MRI miss a plantar plate strain? 
 
Well, that's a great question and that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast. 

Single most effective but most neglected tool to run earlier after injury

Almost all runners who call me for a consultation have one thing in common.
 
The number one thing they want to get out of their discussion with me is “How can I start running sooner? I want to get back to running so I don't lose all my running fitness.”
 
There is one free and highly effective tool you can use as an injured runner, but most of the runners I talked to seem to be completely neglecting and ignoring it.
 
What is the single most effective but most often neglected tool injured runners can use to get back to running sooner?
 
Well, that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast. 

Fibula stress reaction vs stress fracture what is the difference?

If you have ankle pain and you push around on that lump of bone on the outside of your ankle, you may realize that you have pain on the bone specifically.  

If so, you might become worried that you have a thing called a fibular stress fracture.
 
If you start trying to figure out what to do, one of the first things you may find is a lot of discussion about something called a "stress reaction" instead of just a "stress fracture". 
 
What's the difference between a fibular stress reaction and a stress fracture in a runner? 
 
Well, that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast. 

What does an elephant, a woman in high heels and a forefoot runner have in common?

This may seem like a strange episode, but I just had a conversation with a runner who is not just a forefoot runner, but she is really a forefoot runner. Like running-on-your-tiptoes kind of forefoot runner.
 
One of the things that I brought up in our discussion were some research studies that have actually calculated the amount of pressure in the forefoot when a woman is wearing high heels. 
 
What does an elephant, a woman in high heels and a forefoot runner have in common? 
 
Well, that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast. 

4 main causes of lateral ankle pain in runners

If you've been running, training for a marathon or an ultra-marathon and you start to get pain on the outside of your ankle, you do have a reason to be concerned.
 
There are really four things that seem to cause pain on the outside of the ankle the most. We're going to talk about those today. 
 
What are the four main causes of lateral ankle pain in runners? 

Well, that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast. 

Best imaging study for plantar plate injury in runners

If you have been told you have a plantar plate sprain, you're probably already really frustrated. 

Even minor plantar plate tears can be nagging injuries that are very difficult to get better while you're running on them. 

The bottom line is, you've got to make sure that the plantar plate ligament improves because (in general) plantar plate sprains are either getting worse or they're getting better.
 
One of the questions I get all the time from runners is what is really the best study for a plantar plate injury.
 
What's the best imaging study for a runner who is suspected of having a plantar plate injury? 
 
Well, that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast. 

Best test for a runner with ankle sprain

If you're out on a run and you roll your ankle, you need to know how you can test the ankle to figure out what is wrong.
 
More importantly, what tests can tell you how likely it is that you're actually going to get back to running and not have an ankle sprain again.  

There are several tests doctors use in evaluating injured ankles. Some are more important than others.

What is the single most important test for a runner with an ankle sprain? 
 
Well, that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast.

Fracture that seemed like a plantar plate sprain

There are times when you might have a suspected stress fracture in your foot. If so, your doctor may order an X-ray. 

There are other times when it's extremely unlikely that you have a broken bone at all, but it is almost certainly just a soft tissue injury.
 
One of the questions I get a lot from runners with plantar plate sprains is how to make sure the pain is not from  a stress fracture.  

I have only seen one case where somebody had fracture pain in the exact same spot you would have pain when you had a plantar plate injury. 
 
Can a fracture in the metatarsal seem like a plantar plate sprain? 
 
Well, that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast.

How to rule out soft tissue vs. bone injury

If you are running with foot or ankle pain, and you're trying to figure out what's wrong, the first step is deciding if it is a bone injury or  soft tissue injury. 
 
It might be useful to talk about the thought process I use when trying to figure out whether or not you have bone versus soft tissue injury. 
 
How do you rule out soft tissue versus a bone injury when you're a runner and you've rolled your ankle? 
 

Well, that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast. 

Why does a Lister’s corn hurt when I run

I recently did an episode where I was talking about Lister’s corns.

If you missed it, a "Lister's corn" is really just a callus or thick skin that looks like the pinky toenail or the little toenail has a split in it. 

That edge of the nail that looks like a completely separate piece of nail.

But it's not a nail at all, it's callus.
 
I just saw a runner who had this problem where his Lister's corn was really painful. It hurt so much he thought the nail might be ingrown. He asked,

Why does a lister’s corn hurt when I run? 
 
Well, that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast.