When Long COVID Walks into the Office: Recognizing Foot and Ankle Manifestations

When Long COVID Walks into the Office: Recognizing Foot and Ankle Manifestations

A Patient walks into the office with generalized foot pain. Taking a history, you learn the patient has fatigue, or myalgias in other muscles, or feels weak all the time. What are the usual diagnoses? Long COVID has changed how I approach foot and ankle pain in these patients. I no longer believe we can safely evaluate lower-extremity symptoms without at least considering its potential role. When patients tell me their feet “haven’t been right” since having COVID, I don’t dismiss the comment. I treat it as a meaningful clinical clue. This does require some outside-the-box thinking, and we all need to start taking a deeper dive.

By Mikel D. Daniels, DPM, MBA, President and Chief Medical Officer, WeTreatFeet Podiatry

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Beyond the Squeeze: Why Offloading Pressure Isn’t Enough to Save the Diabetic Foot

Beyond the Squeeze: Why Offloading Pressure Isn’t Enough to Save the Diabetic Foot

In the quiet halls of the Gillis W. Long Hansen’s Disease Center in Carville, Louisiana, the legendary Dr. Paul Brand once faced a clinical mystery. He was conducting a study with a hypothesis that seemed like a mathematical certainty: total bed rest should heal a foot ulcer faster than any other intervention. By removing the variable of weight-bearing pressure entirely, the skin should have had the perfect environment to repair itself.

By Dr. Dennis Janisse

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The 2026 Wound Care Tornado: Five Surprising Realities for Mobile Practitioners

The 2026 Wound Care Tornado: Five Surprising Realities for Mobile Practitioners

The current landscape of healthcare regulation is no longer a series of predictable updates. It has evolved into a “tornado” of shifting policies, reimbursement challenges, and administrative complexity. For mobile wound care practitioners, the outlook for 2026 remains promising, provided they pivot from a volume-based mindset to a meticulous, documentation-driven business model. As veterans of regulatory compliance and mobile clinical operations, we outline the essential realities for surviving and succeeding in the coming year.

By Windy Cole, DPM, CWSP, FACCWS, FFPM RCPS (Glasg) and Martha R. Kelso, RN, CWHS, DAPWCA, HBOT

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What Contributes to Tendon Thickness After Stroke–A Commentary

What Contributes to Tendon Thickness After Stroke–A Commentary

April, August, and December are months reserved to address comments made to articles written for “A Foot Forward for Optimum Health”. However, I did not have any comments from May, June and July and I wanted to make some comments and pose clinical questions from the article titled, “Changes in Lower Extremity Tendon Thickness After Stroke Rehab (Balance and Outcomes)” in the series “From The Literature” for June 2026.

By Dr. Jennifaye V. Brown

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The New AI Playbook for Specialty Practices: Why Podiatry Clinics Are Embracing End-to-End Automation

The New AI Playbook for Specialty Practices: Why Podiatry Clinics Are Embracing End-to-End Automation

For many podiatrists, the workday doesn’t end when the last patient leaves. It continues through documentation, claim reviews, prior authorizations, patient messages, billing questions, and a growing list of administrative tasks that have become as much a part of practice as diagnosing plantar fasciitis or treating diabetic foot ulcers.

By Hersh Solanki, Chief Business Officer, Athelas

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AOFAS Annual Meeting and IFFAS 9th Biennial Meeting 2026 Highlight International Advancements and Innovation in Orthopaedics

AOFAS Annual Meeting and IFFAS 9th Biennial Meeting 2026 Highlight International Advancements and Innovation in Orthopaedics

More than 1,260 foot and ankle orthopaedic surgeons, advanced health practitioners, orthopaedic residents, and medical students across the globe attended the American Orthopaedic Foot & Ankle Society® (AOFAS) Annual Meeting and the International Federation of Foot & Ankle Societies (IFFAS) 9th Biennial Meeting on September 16–19, 2026. The meeting was held in-person in Seattle, Washington, as well as virtually.

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Why Consistency Is the Foundation of a Great Custom Orthotic

Why Consistency Is the Foundation of a Great Custom Orthotic

For years, I believed that the art of making a great custom orthotic began with experience. The more feet I evaluated, the more I realized that even the best prescription could only be as good as the information I sent to the laboratory. Like many clinicians, I worked through the evolution of plaster casts, foam boxes, and eventually digital scanning. Digital technology made the process faster, but I still found myself asking the same question: Am I consistently capturing the foot in the position I want the laboratory to build from?

By Dr Robert Conenello, DPM

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Four Minutes Daily Resistance Training Can Quadruple Fitness in Older Adults

Four Minutes Daily Resistance Training Can Quadruple Fitness in Older Adults

Mobility disability is associated with functional decline in older adults. Resistance training (RT) improves mobility disability, but adherence to national RT guidelines is poor. Researchers evaluated the effects of a 12-week brief, home-based functional RT program, FAST (Functional Activity Strength Training)-2, on adherence and functional impairment in older, inactive adults ≥ 65 years of age, with pre-existing walking difficulty.

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Preoperative Pes Planus on Orthopedic Implant Removal After First MTP Joint Arthrodesis

Preoperative Pes Planus on Orthopedic Implant Removal After First MTP Joint Arthrodesis

First metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joint fusion is a frequently employed surgical treatment option for hallux rigidus and hallux valgus. Implant-related complications are common, necessitating further investigation into predisposing factors. The altered mechanics of pes planus may influence surgical outcomes; however, its direct impact on implant removal rates post-fusion remains unclear.

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Peroneal Muscle Size and Quality Changes after Rehab in Patients with CAI

Peroneal Muscle Size and Quality Changes after Rehab in Patients with CAI

Peroneal muscles are the primary stabilizers against ankle inversion movements associated with lateral ankle sprains. Individuals with chronic ankle instability (CAI) demonstrate peroneal muscle deficits including decreased strength, slower nerve conduction velocity, and reduced cross-sectional area. Ultrasound (US) imaging provides a valid, cost-effective method to assess peroneal muscle size and quality following rehabilitation.

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Biological Augmentation During Acute Achilles Tendon Repair

Biological Augmentation During Acute Achilles Tendon Repair

Acute Achilles tendon rupture may present intraoperatively with severely frayed and macerated tendon ends (“mop-end”), which can compromise primary repair strength and increase the risk of gap formation. Case report: A 43-year-old male sustained a right Achilles tendon rupture during recreational football. Ultrasound confirmed a complete rupture. Open surgical repair was performed 6 days after injury.

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Lateral Plantar Angioplasty/Reverse Sural Flap Reconstruction for Heel Limb Salvage

Lateral Plantar Angioplasty/Reverse Sural Flap Reconstruction for Heel Limb Salvage

Diabetic foot ulcers complicated by peripheral arterial disease are associated with poor wound healing and an increased risk of amputation. Heel wounds are particularly difficult to reconstruct because of their weight-bearing function and limited soft-tissue coverage. While revascularization is commonly performed for critical limb ischemia, limited evidence guides its use prior to reconstructive surgery in patients with preserved in-line arterial flow.

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Hinge Position and Wedge Orientation in Zadek Osteotomy Across Different Foot Morphologies

Hinge Position and Wedge Orientation in Zadek Osteotomy Across Different Foot Morphologies

The Zadek osteotomy (ZO) is a surgical option for insertional Achilles tendinopathy. By modifying the position of the posterior calcaneal tuberosity, ZO may reduce posterosuperior calcaneal prominence, mechanical conflict at the Achilles insertion, and tensile stress on the tendon. A weightbearing computed tomography (WBCT)-based virtual simulation was performed on 60 asymptomatic feet, categorized as cavus (n = 20), neutral (n = 20), or planus (n = 20).

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