Doc On The Run Podcast

When are x-rays useful for runners with Morton’s neuroma?

Let's say you're out on a run and you start getting some aching pain in the ball of the foot. It persists for a while. 
 
It's not really that bad. Your foot is not killing you. But it starts to bother you more and more over the course of a few weeks. 
 
Being proactive, you see a podiatrist. The podiatrist tells you that he thinks you have something called a Morton's neuroma. So he does an x-ray of your foot and what do you see? Well, nothing. Why is that?
 
When are x-rays useful for a runner with a Morton's neuroma? 
 
Well, that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast.

 

Best way to file toenails for marathon runners

Have you ever had black toenails after a long run?

Have you ever lost a toenail after a marathon?

Have you tried using goopy skin lubricants, or worn  bigger shoes that make you feel like you're wearing clown shoes?

If you have, but you're still having problems beating up your toenails in your running shoes when run, I've got a simple solution that may actually help. 

Today on the Doc On The Run Podcast we're talking about the best way to file your toenails if you're a marathon runner.

When is plantar fascia surgery necessary for runners?

If you're a runner with plantar fasciitis, you probably have heel pain when you get up and step out of bed. 

If that's gone on for months, you tried icing, you've tried stretching, and you've become frustrated, it starts to become pretty easy for your doctor to talk you into surgery. 

If you've had plantar fasciitis for a long time and your doctor is trying to convince you need surgery, you should listen up!
 
When is plantar fascia surgery really necessary for runners? 
 
Well, that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast. 

Ankle pain vs sinus tarsi impingement when running

If you get aching pain in your ankles when you're running, and it seems to lag and doesn't just go away, you might not have ankle pain at all. 

There's a thing that I see often in runners complaining of ankle pain, but when I actually look at the runner's feet, it's a different condition altogether.

That condition is something called "sinus tarsi impingement."

Today on the Doc On The Run Podcast, we're talking about ankle pain versus sinus tarsi impingement when running. 

Does the plantar plate need to “heal” on MRI before I can run?

Plantar plate ligament sprains are a tough injury for runners. Plantar plate tears can cause a lot of pain in the ball of the foot. Unless you treat them correctly, that pain can persist for a long time. As a result plantar plate injuries can be super frustrating.

Unfortunately, plantar plate tears are often diagnosed when you get an MRI of the foot. I often get questions from runners asking me whether or not they have to wait for another MRI before they can run.

Does the plantar plate ligament need to heal on an MRI before I can run?

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

How long should I use crutches?

Today's episode comes from a question posted as a YouTube video comment.  That video was explaining how using crutches for a short period of time can help injured runners.  I wasn't talking about months of crutches, not many weeks, but a short period of time to try to accelerate the process of healing over-training injuries. In the comments someone posted and said, "How long would you use crutches for this...?"  How long should I use crutches?  Well, that's a million-dollar question!  And that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast.

Plantar wart treatment options in runners

WARNING: You may not want to listen to this topic while you're eating.

I'm going to tell you a story that goes along with dinner. 

Believe it or not. One time we went out to a restaurantwith a bunch of friends. 

A member of our dinner party took off his shoes and he said, "Hey, what do you think of this?" He was literally showing me warts on the feet right there in the restaurant.

Plantar warts are on the bottom of the foot. Warts on the feet can be difficult to treat because the skin is so thick. 

To make matters worse, he had a more severe type of warts called mosaic warts. They were all over the feet. That makes treatment even more difficult.

Today on the Doc On The Run Podcast, we're talking about plantar wart treatment options in runners.

Bone bruise vs stress reaction in a runner

Whenever I speak to a runner who wants to know if they can run with a bone bruise, I get confused. If you were "diagnosed" with a bone bruise, you should be confused, too.

A bruise is a very simple thing. You fall down and land on your knee and you get a bruise. You get a bruise because your kneecap crushes the skin against the ground and you get bleeding in the skin that you see as discoloration that we call a bruise.

You can't see that in a bone. When you get diagnosed with a bone bruise, you have to think of it in terms of bone injury, like a stress fracture. The continuum of bone injury includes stress response, stress reaction and stress fractures.

You have to understand the severity of the bone injury before you can decide whether or not to run. 

What is the difference between a bone bruise and a stress reaction in a runner? 

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

FHL tenosynovitis PRP injection vs. Cortisone injection

If you have pain at the bottom of the big toe joint, up along the arch, just above the plantar fascia, you may have been told that you have this thing called FHL tenosynovitis.

"Tenosynovitis" just means that you have inflammation of the tendon sheath or tube that carries the flexor tendon down to your big toe. It helps you pull your big toe down when you push off while running. When the tendon sheath gets inflamed, it can be painful.

If you have tenosynovitis, your doctor may recommend a cortisone injection, or a Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) injection.

So what's the difference between these two injections and why would you want one versus another?

Today on the Doc On The Run Podcast we're talking about FHL tenosynovitis injections, corticosteroids versus PRP injection.

How pneumonia made my Kona dream come true

It's no secret that I enjoy Ironman triathlons. I did 15 of them, and the last one I did was the Ironman World Championships. That doesn't mean I'm fast. It just means I'm stubborn.

But when I was a kid, I was obsessed with Ironman Hawaii and I decided that I was going to do Kona.

You never know what good or "bad" things can happen to help you fulfill your dreams. 

Long story short, the day before I was going to leave for Hawaii, literally the day before I was getting on the plane, I was in my doctor's office and he said that I could not possibly do Ironman Hawaii because I had pneumonia. 

But it turns out the Universe is always conspiring to make dreams come true.

Today on the Doc On The Run Podcast, we're talking about how pneumonia made my Kona dream come true.