Doc On The Run Podcast

How to tell tenosynovitis from neuritis in a runner

If you're a runner with running pain on the top of the foot, it could be lots of different things. 

The actual diagnosis depends on what happened, what you did, and what it feels like now.

There are a couple of really common things causing pain in the top of the foot in runners.  

Let's talk about two common causes. It may be either a tendon or a nerve on the top of your foot.

Today on the Doc On The Run Podcast, we're talking about how a runner can tell tenosynovitis from neuritis in the top of the foot.

Injury hackers are not normal

If you've got an overtraining injury, but you're trying to figure out how to stay fit, a lot of people are going to think that you're not normal.

But if you ran 50 miles you are not normal.

If you signed up for a marathon, you're not normal.

If you are a runner, you are not normal.

Don't think you will be told you're normal when you are injured, in pain, but still working out.

But that's exactly what all the rapidly recovering injured runners do.

I call them injury hackers.

Today on the Doc On The Run Podcast, we're talking about how injury hackers are not normal.

Good news and bad news

I just saw a comment on our YouTube videos from a runner named Mary. She viewed the video on permanent calf atrophy, and how that can happen if you spend way too long in a fracture walking boot or a cast.

Mary replied and basically said, "Great. Now you depressed the crap out of me. Thanks. Ugh."

Realizing that you have lost fitness to the point of atrophy can be really upsetting for any runner.

Well, I've got some good news and some bad news for you, and that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On the Run podcast.

Can I run with Jones Fracture?

If you've been running and you started having pain on the outside of your foot and then you went to see a doctor who diagnosed you with a thing called a Jones fracture, you're probably really worried right now and that would be reasonable because most of the time when you get a Jones fracture you might wind up in surgery.

I think it's important, if you're considering whether or not you could run with a Jones fracture, you really have to think about what a Jones fracture is, where it's located, why it's so scary, and what you can do about it. The first thing is, of course, what is a Jones fracture exactly?

Can I run with a Jones fracture? Well, that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast.

Can I ski with a metatarsal stress fracture?

This may seem like a crazy question when you first think about it, because skiing seems like a high stress activity. But I have had lots of runners who have asked me this question, and usually when they do, they have thought about it, and they point out that a ski boot is a very stiff and very protective piece of equipment.

The question though is not really, if it's safe for you to wear the boot, the problem is, is it safe for you to ski with the boot and that leads to several questions that you've really got to ask yourself if you want to think about whether or not it's actually safe for you to do it.

Can I ski with a metatarsal stress fracture? Well, that's a great question and that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run Podcast.

The 2 most important questions for recovering runners

If you rest long enough any overtraining injury will eventually calm down. 

But if you rest too long, you will lose all of your running fitness. 

The difference between elite athletes who get better fast, and average runners who take forever to recover are the daily activities they focus on while recovering. 

Today, on the Doc on the Run podcast, we're talking about the two most important questions for recovering runners.

First aid for metatarsal stress fracture in a runner

Let's say you're out on a run and you start noticing this weird aching pain in your foot and so you suspect you have a metatarsal stress fracture. I often get consultation calls and webcam visits, and I even do house calls for athletes who have metatarsal stress fractures.

The good news is that a lot of the times, if you actually do something, when you first notice that aching pain in your foot, when you're running, it may not actually be a true stress fracture.

Today on the Doc On The Run podcast we're talking about the five most important things you can do for first aid for a metatarsal stress fracture if you're a runner.

Is it okay to run before I get MRI of plantar plate sprain?

I often get questions from runners and this is actually a common one that I get from runners when they have either enrolled in the plantar plate sprain treatment course for runners, or if they've signed up to do an individual webcam consultation.

Everybody seems to think that an MRI will give you a crystal clear image of what's going on inside your body and in some sense, that's true. It is amazing, the amount of detail you can get when you get an MRI. However, you have to remember that the plantar plate ligament is a very small structure and when you get an MRI, it doesn't necessarily show everything.

Is it okay to run before I get an MRI of a plantar plate sprain? That's a great question and that's what we're talking about today on Doc On The Run Podcast.

Worst way to tell a stress reaction from a stress fracture

I lecture at medical conferences about stress fractures, trying to teach physicians the difference between a stress response, a stress reaction, which is basically an irritated and inflamed metatarsal bone, and a stress fracture where there's actually a crack that can cause real trouble.

One of the questions doctors ask me is what's the best way and the worst way to tell a stress reaction from a stress fracture, because it does make a difference.

What is the worst way to tell a stress reaction from a stress fracture? Well, that's what we're talking about today on the Doc On The Run podcast.

Gratitude for you and 500 Podcast episodes

If you only get one thing from this episode, let it be this…Thank you!

From the bottom of my heart I am grateful for you as a listener of the show!

More than 10 years ago I started writing a blog talking about running injuries, and the various treatments that we as physicians offer. A few years later, at which point I had actually only listened to a few podcasts myself, I thought it might be useful to start recording a podcast to talk about foot and ankle injuries in injured runners.

Well, its hard to believe but today is episode #500. And that’s what we’re talking about on the Doc On The Run Podcast!