Few Foot and Ankle Surgeons are bloggers. In an effort to apply to the hi-tech in all of us, I have decided to start this blog, not because it is in my nature to blog, but it is in my nature to work my hardest to succeed. Let me just tell you a couple of things that most people do not know about foot and ankle surgeons.
1. There are at two major types of foot and ankle surgeons
–Doctor of Podiatric Medicine: This is a surgeon that goes through undergraduate training in pre-medicine then goes to a medical school that has proper staffing to teach a podiatrist both in-depth medicine training and foot and ankle medicine and surgical training. It takes 4 years to do this. Nearly all states require that a recently graduated Doctor of Podiatric Medicine complete a residency. A few decades ago, 1-2 years was sufficient, but under excellent leadership, the bar was lifted, and now 3 year residencies are the only options. This makes for better trained surgeons starting right out of the gate.
Think about what is in a foot: nerves, ligaments, tendons, bones, joints, skin, nails, arteries, veins, etc. As you can see, there are elements of neurology, dermatology, primary care, pediatrics, plastic surgery, vascular surgery, and orthopedics involved in the complete training of a foot and ankle surgeon. When you have pain in your foot or ankle, a podiatrist is trained to look at all aspects of what could be going on, and to think of solutions from a primary care perspective, medication standpoint, and surgical standpoint. As you can imagine, it would take quite some time to be trained in all possible treatments for foot and ankle conditions, and that is why the 3 year podiatric surgical residency program was created to build off of the 4 year clinical and didactic training. It is not uncommon now for a podiatric resident to be spending time with the great vascular surgeons, neurologists, wound care specialists, dermatologists, plastic surgeons, general surgeons, and my favorite, orthopedic and ortho-trauma surgeons. There is a lot to learn from everyone, and that is what podiatrists pick up along the way. Simply put, podiatrists are your one stop shopping super store for surgical, medical, and primary care needs for a foot and ankle surgeon.
There was one time where a man was in my clinic due to a primary care provider referral, but the patient demanded an orthopedic surgeon take his neuroma in his foot out. He was promptly referred back to me and my friend to do the surgery. Think about that before you decide – the buck stops here.
–Foot and Ankle Fellowship Trained Orthopedist: You run into this type of surgeon and you are usually in luck. Not only did they get general orthopedic training from head to toe, but they spend another year or so learning about the foot and ankle. Many of these types of surgeons learn from podiatrists in their fellowship training. The general shift has been for those obsessed about foot and ankle surgical care to shift to the podiatric programs. This is simply the reality of today; foot and ankle orthopedic fellowships are decreasing as podiatric residencies increase.
What do we think of when we hear of orthopedic surgeons? Bone and muscle and ligament. Make sure to pick an orthopedist that is trained in foot and ankle surgery if you have foot pain and that it is a bone, joint, or tendon problem. Otherwise, defer to #1 – Podiatrists. Be careful of those orthopedists that trash podiatry as a profession; they are often times never trained by a podiatrist but claim to know a lot about foot and ankle surgery. Maybe they are that gifted, but perhaps not, and do you want to risk being wrong in your game of russian roulette? Just a thought.
I thought about being an orthopedist, a pediatrician, or a dermatologist, but I decided I wanted to be a specialist in a specific area of the body, in all facets of it. There you go; podiatry fit that mold for all of those areas! As a closing note, Robert M. Harris of Johnson City, TN, a skilled orthopedic trauma surgeon, learned a lot from podiatrists in his career in respect to foot and ankle surgery, and decided to give back by training me. That is the way to get the best care!
2. Look at Everything Below Your Knee: Most New Podiatrists Can Treat Most of this Region
As time goes by, podiatrists are able to treat problems further up the leg. Most people know about the bread-and-butter of podiatry–bunion and hammertoe surgery–but that knowledge is significantly outdated.
Did you know that a higher percentage of podiatrists put in total ankle replacements than orthopedists? Because I am in a small town, it will take a while before anyone does total ankle replacements, but when it does, you better believe I will be the first one to arrange that with Madison Memorial Hospital.
Did you know that new podiatrists do ankle fusions as well as ankle fractures routinely? Once again, this is probably new information for you. There have been some attempts at educating the public about podiatrists, but it has been inadequate over the years, but slowly people are learning as a whole that when they hear the professional name of podiatrists, that means everything below the knee, with few exceptions, can be treated by them.
So, there are just a few things about podiatry that are good to know. Of note, we as professionals are pushing for the term "Foot and Ankle Surgeons," which, frankly, isn't perfect either. It's worth learning about podiatrists as more than just toe surgeons; that's 30-40 years outdated. I am; so to say, a Podiatrist version 7.0 and proud of it!
To learn more and/or schedule, go to my website http://www.mountainriverfootandanklecare.com for Rexburg-Based Quality Care!
