Achilles Tendonitis

Achilles tendonitis can cause major pain and if not treated, it can lead to the complete rupture of your Achilles tendon. Dr. Mark Forman, DPM of Scottsdale, AZ is vastly experienced in proper Achilles tendon care and can put his patients back on the right track to health before disastrous outcomes.

Achilles tendonitis is a condition where the Achilles tendon is irritated and overloaded. The Achilles tendon, the tendon that connects your heel bones to your calf muscle, can feel tender, stiff, and often there is a burning sensation. The symptoms typically occur after the tendon has been inactive for a while, like stepping out of bed first thing in the morning. This condition is usually caused by a sudden increase in activity. For instance, if you never were a runner before, but all of a sudden started running multiple miles per day, the Achilles tendon can become irritated.

Dr. Forman can recognize when the Achilles tendon is inflamed and can recommend a treatment plan based on your condition and past history. Many patients need a regimen of anti-inflammatories, ice, stretching, and strengthening. Orthotic insoles are also great for providing specific support that feet need.

If you have been feeling symptoms similar to the ones listed for Achilles tendonitis, do not hesitate to schedule your appointment with us. To schedule with Dr. Mark Forman, DPM, call our Scottsdale, AZ office at (480) 423-8400. More information about this condition can be found on our website, www.azfootpain.com. 

Get Rid of Gout

Gout is characterized by sudden, severe attacks of pain, redness and tenderness in the joints, often at the base of the big toe. This complex form of arthritis can affect anyone and although men are more likely to get gout, women become increasingly more susceptible to gout after menopause. An attack of gout can occur suddenly, often waking you up in the middle of the night with the sensation that your big toe is on fire. Fortunately, Dr. Mark Forman is trained to relieve your discomfort.

A gout attack can be brought on by stressful events, alcohol, drugs, or another illness. Early attacks usually get better within three to 10 days, even without treatment. Gout is a disease distinguished by an abnormal metabolism of uric acid, resulting in an excess of uric acid in the tissues and blood. Simply put, people with gout either produce too much uric acid or more commonly, their kidneys are incapable of removing it. The goals of treatment for gout are fast pain relief and prevention of future gout attacks and long-term complications such as joint destruction and kidney damage. Specific treatment depends on the severity of gout itself.

If these symptoms sound all too familiar, please give us a call to discuss your treatment options. To learn more about the conditions we treat and the services we provide visit www.azfootpain.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Mark Forman in Scottsdale, AZ, call 480-423-8400.

Heal the pain

If you run, walk, jump, skip, or hop, you are susceptible to heel pain. So, who’s not susceptible to the dreaded heel pain? Well, no one, really. Every mile you walk (or run, jump, skip, or hop) is putting tons and tons of stress on your feet and this stress can cause heel and ankle pain. Luckily, this rarely requires surgery and will get better on its own. However, it’s extremely important that if your heel hurts, make an appointment with Dr. Mark Forman at his Scottsdale office to determine the right path for recovery and whether you could possibly have Achilles Tendonitis or Plantar Fasciitis.

Achilles Tendonitis is exactly what it sounds like: inflammation of the achilles tendon, or the back of the heel. If you have heel pain that is the worst in the morning when you get out of bed of when you stand up after sitting for a prolonged period of time, you should make an appointment ASAP. If you do happen to have Achilles tendonitis, calf stretch, Heel cups/lifts, ice, night splint, physical therapy, activity modification will be your best bet to a speedy recovery. Of course, every case is different and Dr. Forman will tell you the method that would be best for you.

Now, if your pain stems from the sole of the foot (toward the heel end of the arch), you could have plantar fasciitis. Anyone can get plantar fasciitis, yet athletes are more likely to get it, as put more stress on their feet. The same treatments are applied to Plantar fasciitis as to achilles tendonitis. Plantar fasciitis tends to go away around 90% of the time, but this can take 12 to 18 months.

The morale of the story is this: if your heel is in pain, your best bet is to make an appointment with Dr. Forman so he can: 1) determine the source of the pain and 2) what you should do to get better as fast as possible.

Causes and Treatment for Heel Pain

Heel pain is generally the result of walking abnormalities that place too much stress on the heel bone and the soft tissues that attach to it. Heel pain is an extremely common and potentially disruptive affliction that has many possible causes, including stress fractures, arthritis, nerve irritation, cysts, tendonitis and most often, plantar fasciitis. Fortunately, no matter what is causing your heel pain, our Dr. Mark Forman can treat it.

Heel pain is not usually caused by a single injury, such as a twist or a fall, but rather the result of repetitive stress and a pounding of the heel. Your feet can handle a heavy load, but too much stress pushes them over their limits. Heel pain is frequently triggered by wearing flat footwear because this type of footwear can stretch the plantar fascia to such an extent that the area becomes swollen (inflamed). When you continue to walk on a sore heel, it will only get worse and could become a chronic condition leading to more problems. Treatment depends on the severity of the condition, but methods may include resting from the activities that caused the problem, doing stretch exercises, using pain medication and wearing open-back shoes.

If you are experiencing heel pain, please give us a call to discuss your treatment options. To learn more about the conditions we treat and the services we provide visitwww.azfootpain.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Mark Forman in Scottsdale, AZ, call 480-423-8400.

Running Injury Prevention

When an individual is an avid runner, there are a variety of injuries that can occur throughout their training. They range from mildly annoying to something requiring physical therapy or even surgery. Most common running injuries are due to overuse, overtraining, improper shoes, or a biomechanical flaw in body structure and motion. Dr. Mark Forman is able to treat you if you get injured, however, he and the rest of our staff would rather you take precaution to prevent a running injury instead.

To ensure that you take proper care of your body, make sure that you stretch properly, wear appropriate footwear, and listen to your body when it’s telling you to rest. If you don’t stretch before a run, you could actually strain your muscles and it might even slow you down. If you wear the wrong shoe it can actually aggravate existing problems, causing pain in your feet, legs, knees, or hips. In addition, you should never push your body to the limit if it’s telling you to take it easy. If you follow these tips, you should be able to run without risking injury.

If you've recently injured your foot or ankle, please give us a call to discuss your treatment options. To learn more about the conditions we treat and the services we provide visitwww.azfootpain.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Mark Forman in Scottsdale, AZ, call 480-423-8400.

Caring for Foot Blisters

Most blisters caused by friction or minor burns do not require doctor’s care. However, if a blister develops on your foot and causes you concern, you should contact Dr. Mark Forman. It’s important that you do not puncture a blister at home unless it is large, painful, or likely to be further irritated. The fluid-filled blister keeps the underlying skin clean, which prevents infection and promotes healing. However, if you can’t wait and need to pop a blister, please follow these care tips.

• Use a sterilized needle or razor blade (to sterilize it, put the point or edge in a flame until it is red-hot, or rinse it in alcohol).


• Wash your hands and the area thoroughly, then make a small hole and gently squeeze out the clear fluid.


• If the fluid is white or yellow, the blister may be infected and needs medical attention.


• Do not remove the skin over a broken blister. The new skin underneath needs this protective cover.


• Apply an antibiotic ointment or cream.


• Look for signs of infection to develop, including pus drainage, any red or warm skin surrounding the blister, or red streaks leading away from the blister.

If you are suffering from a foot blister, please give us a call to discuss your treatment options. To learn more about the conditions we treat and the services we provide visitwww.azfootpain.com for more information. To schedule an appointment with Dr. Mark Forman in Scottsdale, AZ, call 480-423-8400.

Don't you hate when your feet fall asleep

It happens to all of us; on an airplane, sitting at our desk, or just lying in bed: the dreaded pins and needles of the foot falling asleep. Why does this happen? And is there a surefire remedy to make our foot feel normal again?

Well many people believe that when the foot falls asleep, it does so because of a lack of blood circulation. Sorry, but this is just an old wives tale. The foot actually falls asleep because of the nerves. Nerves are the tiny “wires” that are all over your body and make you feel. The majority of the nerves in your body carry messages from your brain to the body and vice versa. Think of them as electrical wires. And when you compress your nerves for a long enough period of time, the communication from brain to foot (or any part of your body that is being compressed for a long enough time) is disrupted. This disruption is what causes the pins and needles feeling, or what some call, the static screen of the body.

How do you get rid of this? Most people move their foot around to get blood flow back, and even though blood flow may not be the problem, their solution is correct. By moving your foot to new places and decompressing the nerves that were disrupted, the annoying feeling will go away fairly quickly.

So, whenever your foot, hand, arm, or leg gets those pins and needles, and you know it fell asleep, move it around (dance if you have to!) and get those nerves communicating again!