Podiatry as a Profession:
My path to becoming a Podiatrist and my experience as a newly qualified practitioner: Part 5
Deirdre O’Flynn, BSc Podiatry M.Inst.Ch.P

The end of April I got the opportunity to attend the 2012 Conference and Trade Exhibition in Southport. This was a new experience for me as it was my first conference since graduating. I was really looking forward to meeting my friend from University who was also attending the conference for the weekend. She arrived from Edinburgh on the Friday evening. I flew into Manchester airport on Friday night. I discovered Southport is a beautiful town and was a great place to have the conference. It is a seaside town with a Victorian feel, a lot of the historical buildings were kept in a pristine condition.

The conference was held in the Southport theatre and Conference centre. This was an ideal setting for the conference because it was very central with magnificent views overlooking the waterfront. The Saturday morning I woke up early, in anticipation for the day and the events which lay ahead. We arrived at the Conference Centre for 9 am where we were greeted by a very friendly member from the IOCP. She set us up with badges, lunch tickets and an information pack. We wandered into a large room where several trade exhibitions were set up. At 9.30 I attended the padding and strapping workshop. This workshop was attended by about thirty other Health Professionals. I found this workshop valuable because it was a great opportunity to speak to other Podiatry Professionals. I also got to learn some of their techniques they use in practice. Most of the information the tutor had offered I had covered in University but it was worth refreshing my knowledge.

Following this workshop I took some time to walk around some of the other trade stands. I spoke to some of the sales representatives. There were in excess of twenty trade exhibitions. The Lunula Laser caught my attention. It is a low level laser that is used in the treatment of Onychomycosis. Rather than oral medication that can be harmful the laser is safer. It works by stimulating two wave lengths one to stimulate a natural immune response and the other for fungicidal activity. The patient would receive two 12 – minute treatments. After speaking to the sales representation I found this interesting and it would be much less time consuming for the patient. The alternative fungal nail drops would need to be applied daily for a period of six months. This is an innovative new treatment that could be used in our clinic in Midleton. The machine costs £25,000 which is a huge investment and I feel it warrants more research before we could purchase this. At 11 am my friend went to attend the Diabetes Workshop and I sat in on the Annual General Meeting. This gave me an insight into how the voting system works and it highlighted some issues that were concerning some members.........

Read the full article Podiatry Review Volume 69 No. 4

Hyperhidrosis - Sweaty Feet Cause, Treatment & maintenance

Julie Halford RGN & medical advisor for the Hyperhidrosis Support Group

Primary Hyperhidrosis affects at least 1% of the UK population and can have a devastating effect on the sufferer’s life. 

Often present in young children, but becoming more apparent in adolescents as these young adults become more aware of their bodies. Embarrassment with sodden hands, feet or axillae and the inability at times to even carry out simple tasks such as dealing with paper, metal and electrics, make a miserable existence for those who suffer with Hyperhidrosis.

Those who suffer from Plantar Hyperhidrosis often have sodden and smelly shoes and are either ostracised or bullied by their peers. (Halford et al 2009)

Read the full article in Podiatry Review issue November/December 2011

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A critical review of the evidence to support the use of foot orthosis to improve foot pain in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Mr. Robert Sullivan1, Dr. Derek Santos 2.

* Correspondence to:
Robert Sullivan robert.sullivan@iocp.org.uk or Dr. Derek Santos, dsantos@qmu.ac.uk

1 Robert Sullivan, Faculty of Education, Institute of Chiropodists and Podiatrists, 27 Wright Street, SOUTHPORT, Merseyside, PR9 0TL, UK

2 Dr. Derek Santos, School of Health Sciences, Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, EH21 6UU, Scotland.

This is the summary of a dissertation paper submitted by the author, under the supervision of Dr. Derek Santos, in part fulfillment of the award of the degree of Master of Science in Theory Podiatric Surgery in November 2011.

Abstract

Rheumatoid arthritis is an auto-immune mediated inflammatory disease that often affects the foot with often debilitating consequences. The aim of this critical review is to investigate the effectiveness of foot orthosis in the management of rheumatoid arthritis. An extensive literature search was carried out and Randomised Controlled Trials (RCT), Randomised Crossover Studies, and Crossover Studies were selected and reviewed. In total, three RCT’s, one crossover study and one randomised crossover study were selected.

All of the studies discussed in this review involved custom foot orthosis as well as over-the-counter foot orthotic devices. All of the RCT’s and studies used were concerned with different types of rheumatoid foot pain, i.e. metatarsal pain (16 participants), rearfoot or ankle joint complex pain (100 participants), and pain due to pressure lesions (42 participants). Comparison to custom-made foot orthosis; over-the-counter devices, no intervention, and a combination of adapted footwear with orthosis were not given. Non-custom foot orthosis were also used in one of the crossover studies. Follow ups ranged from 12 to 30 months.

In conclusion, although their where various issues with regards to the quality of the evidence, it appears that foot orthosis has some degree of success and benefit to Rheumatoid Arthritis patients with regards to pain reduction. Custom-made and over-the-counter foot orthotic devices appear to be equally effective...............

Read the full article Podiatry Review Volume 69 No. 4

Looking through the 'window of opportunity': is there a new paradigm of podiatry care on the horizon in early rheumatoid arthritis?

James Woodburn, Kym Hennessy, Martijn PM Steultjens, Iain B McInnes and Deborah E Turner

Over the past decade there have been significant advances in the clinical understanding and care of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Major paradigm changes include earlier disease detection and introduction of therapy, and 'tight control' of follow-up driven by regular measurement of disease activity parameters. The advent of tumour necrosis factor (TNF) inhibitors and other biologic therapies have further revolutionised care.

Low disease state and remission with prevention of joint damage and irreversible disability are achievable therapeutic goals. Consequently new opportunities exist for all health professionals to contribute towards these advances. For podiatrists relevant issues range from greater awareness of current concepts including early referral guidelines through to the application of specialist skills to manage localised, residual disease activity and associated functional impairments. Here we describe a new paradigm of podiatry care in early RA. This is driven by current evidence that indicates that even in low disease activity states destruction of foot joints may be progressive and associated with accumulating disability. The paradigm parallels the medical model comprising early detection, targeted therapy, a new concept of tight control of foot arthritis, and disease monitoring.

'Podiatrists are experts on foot disorders: both patients and rheumatologists can profit from the involvement of a podiatrist'

- Korda and Balint, 2004 [1]. 

Read the full article in Podiatry Review issue November/December 2011