Mercer-Ocean Podiatry, PC

It’s a big problem when any of your joints become less flexible, but that’s especially true of the MTP, or big toe joint. MTP is short for metatarsophalangeal, which means the MTP joint connects the big toe to the rest of the foot, and “hallux rigidus” is the term used to describe a stiff big toe. When we walk, we push off the ground with the balls of our feet and rise onto our toes, making it crucial for the big toe joint to be flexible. If yours has been swelling, you should schedule an appointment with Mercer-Ocean Podiatry in northern New Jersey immediately. The MTP joint depends on its cartilage to move smoothly. That cartilage may be worn away through overuse, or it may deteriorate in response to rheumatoid arthritis or gout. Not everybody develops hallux rigidus, but people are at greater risk if their feet roll inward when they walk or their shoes don’t provide sufficient room for their toes to bend. If hallux rigidus is allowed to progress, the toe may develop a bone spur tha...

Clipping your toenails correctly is the key to avoiding an ingrown nail. But many people are misinformed about this basic aspect of footcare, and during the summer, people are paying more attention to their bare feet and wondering how to trim their nails correctly. If you’re diabetic, this may be something that you’ll always need to be cautious about, but for most people at Mercer-Ocean Podiatry in northern New Jersey, the following advice will keep their toes safe and presentable. It’s a good idea to have separate clippers for the toenails and fingernails. Toenail clippers are a little larger, and using separate clippers will reduce the spread of bacteria. The toenails should be clean when they’re cut, but unless they’re extremely thick, they shouldn’t be wet. A wet nail is at greater risk of tearing. As you cut, go straight across, using a few small trims. You don’t want your nails to be rounded off, or they’ll be at greater risk of growing into the skin and causing a hangnail. Inst...

Do you recall suffering frequent heel pain as a child? If you do, that’s not unusual; children’s bones haven’t fully fused together, and they are more vulnerable to overuse injuries than adults. However, nobody likes seeing their child in pain, and if a child frequently suffers from sore heels, there may be a biomechanical issue at play. At Mercer-Ocean Podiatry, we assist patients of all ages, so we thought it would be a good idea to explain Sever’s Disease, a common source of childhood foot problems, in more detail. Sever’s disease, or calcaneal apophysitis, is inflammation of the growth plate connecting the back of the heel bone to the bone’s main body. The back of the heel bone is where the Achilles tendon, one of the strongest tendons in the body, attaches. When the calf muscles or the tendon itself are tight, the tendon will pull the heel up and backwards, causing soreness in the soft growth plate. The calf muscles are likely to tighten up after a person has been running and jum...

You’re probably familiar with bunions on the inward-facing side of the big toe. But did you know bunions can occur in other places, as well? At the offices of Mercer-Ocean Podiatry, we provide treatments for all kinds of foot deformities, including Tailor’s bunions. These less-common protuberances affect the outside of the smallest toe, and can cause a lot of trouble. Tailor’s bunions develop where one of the metatarsals, the long bones in the mid-section of the foot, meets the base of the pinky toe. As the metatarsal drifts outward, the toe bends inward, creating an inconvenient bump. Although the bunion may be caused by a bone spur, the displacement of the metatarsal is more often caused by genetics and shoes that cramp the toes. It is also likelier to develop when a person has tight calf muscles. We can reduce the discomfort from a chaffed tailor’s bunion by providing anti-inflammatory medications. These may be delivered orally or through an injection. If a case is severe, surgical...

The bottom of the foot is an inconvenient place for unusual growths. Even something that is nonmalignant may cause chafing and make it painful to walk. At Mercer-Ocean Podiatry, we’ve helped a lot of people with foot abnormalities, but since problems tend to be easier to treat when they’re caught early, we wanted to alert patients to the possibility of plantar fibroma. The plantar fascia is the band of tissue that stretches along the bottom of the foot, beneath the arch. You may have heard of it becoming inflamed, which is called plantar fasciitis. A plantar fibroma is a nodule that develops in the fascia. It feels firm and may grow or lead to the development of more nodules. The cause of plantar fibromas is unknown, but their development may be triggered by injuries and genetic predisposition, or have a relationship with chronic liver disease or diabetes. They usually appear in middle-aged people and more often in men. When a patient has a lump in their foot, we may test it to determ...

Foot cramps are a common vexation. Also called charley horses, they occur when a muscle tightens and is unable to relax. Although foot cramps are usually fleeting, when they recur, they could indicate a major problem in the foot or a person’s lifestyle. To help our patients manage them, we at Mercer-Ocean Podiatry wanted to share a few tips. In the moment you experience a foot cramp, you may be able to relieve it by stretching your foot and putting your weight on it. After it passes, try massaging the muscle. One of the most common reasons people get frequent foot cramps is that they don’t stretch enough before exercising, causing them to have a limited blood supply to their foot muscles. However, a person might also be wearing shoes that are too tight or that don’t cushion them on hard floors, or they may be dehydrated or lacking in minerals such as magnesium and potassium. Our office can provide customized orthotics to people who are having trouble finding shoes that fit them, and w...

Have you ever noticed small children sometimes walk on their toes and the balls of their feet, instead of pushing off the ground with their heels? That’s called toe walking, and it’s common among toddlers when they’re learning to walk. But when children over the age of two do it, there may be a biomechanical issue we at the Mercer-Ocean Podiatry offices can assist with. Although toe walking often has no discernable cause and most children outgrow it, some cases are caused by tightness in the Achilles tendon. The Achilles tendon is formed by the merger of the calf muscles and it connects to the heel bone. When it or the calf muscles are too small, a person may find it more comfortable to keep their heel up as they move. Toe walking may be compounded by a neurological or muscular condition that makes walking difficult, resulting in the calf muscles and Achilles tendon being underused. Treatments to extend and strengthen the Achilles tendon in young children are conservative. Many childr...