Supination or high arch of foot
We recently published an article about excessive foot pronation. In this article, we will focus on excessive foot supination and the medial high longitudinal arch of the foot.
With a high arch of the foot, a problem arises because all the weight of a person falls on the heel and heads of the feet. Cavus foot can lead to various signs and symptoms such as pain and instability. It can develop at any age and can occur on one or both legs.
Obvious supination or high arch of the foot
Causes of problems
High foot is often caused by a neurological disorder or by another medical condition such as cerebral palsy, Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, spina bifida, muscular dystrophy, or stroke. In other cases of high foot, a high arch may represent an inherited structural abnormality.
Accurate diagnosis is important, as the underlying cause of such a foot largely determines its further course.
Usually the associated problems are also:
- Hammer fingers (bent fingers) or claw fingers (fingers clenched like a fist).
- Imprints on the heads of the feet (especially on the 5th foot), the outside of the foot or the heel of the foot.
- Pain when standing or walking.
- Unstable foot.
Patients with a high arch of the foot also have faster problems with plantar fasciitis, painful Achilles tendons, low back pain etc.
An accurate diagnosis requires an examination by a specialist orthopedist, who can, based on his findings, send the patient for an additional examination to a specialist neurologist, for a complete assessment of the neurological condition.
Problem solving
The problem of a high arch of the foot can be solved in the following ways:
1. With custom orthopedic insoles to redistribute pressure from the heel and toe heads over the entire foot.
With the help of a lateral wedge, the pressures that run along the outside of the foot can be more centralized. It should be emphasized that in the case of problems with a high arch of the foot, serial orthopedic insoles are not the right solution, as they only turn the foot even more outwards and thus only make the situation worse!
2. With the right shoes
High ankle support shoes, shoes with a wider sole contribute to better stability.
3. With surgery
If non-surgical treatment is unsuccessful, surgery may be needed to reduce pain, increase stability and weakness of the foot.
