Four Comfortable Sandals for Summer 2015 - Podiatrist Recommended.

Four Comfortable Sandals For Summer 2015

Podiatrist Recommended

Wolky Jewel

Wolky Ruby

Wolky Lily

Aravon Katy

These are four great choices for a comfortable sandal. Each of these sandals meet the four criteria that a shoe must have to be comfortable: 

1. A thick, rigid and non-flexible sole, which is protective of the foot joints and any areas of injury, pain or previous surgery. Less motion means less pain, inflammation and swelling - especially through any problematic or painful areas of the foot. 

2. A wide toebox, which decreases pressure on the toes and helps to prevent the formation of bunions, hammertoes, corns and Tailor's bunions. Each of these sandals have adjustable strapping, which help to accommodate swelling.  

3. Rearfoot control, which helps to decrease mechanical strain of tendons, joints and muscles. If a shoe does not have rearfoot strapping, then you are forcing your tendons, joints and ligaments to work harder to stay in the shoe. Rearfoot strapping also helps decrease mechanical strain on the knees, hips and lower back as well as prevent injuries and risk of falling.  

4. Arch support. Each of these sandals has decent arch support. If you have severe flat-feet, it is possible to remove the insole on the Wolky Jewel and Ruby and replace it with your custom-molded orthotic. Although it has been my experience that sandals work better with the insert that comes with the shoe, so take your orthotics with you when shopping for these sandals to see if it works for you. 

These four sandals are recommended for patients with:

*Mild to Moderate Bunions

*Mild to Moderate Hammertoes

*Corns & Calluses

*Mild to Moderate Tailor's Bunions

*Hallux Limitus (limited range of motion at the 1st toe joint)

*Hallux Rigidus (no range of motion at the 1st toe joint)

*Capsulitis

*Plantar Plate Injuries

*Metatarsalgia

*Morton's Neuromas

*Previous Jone's Fractures or Lisfranc's Injuries (check with your podiatrist)

*Plantar Fasciitis (heel pain)

*Mild Achilles Tendonitis

*Mild Tendonitis

*Plantar Fibromas 

*Mild to Moderate Hypermobility / Ligament Laxity

*Previous Metatarsal Stress Fractures (check with your podiatrist)

*Sesamoiditis

*Ingrown toenails

These sandals are not recommended for patient with:

*Charcot Foot

*History of Foot Ulcerations

*Diabetes

*Peripheral Neuropathy (nerve damage)

*Peripheral Arterial Disease (poor circulation) 

If you have any questions about if these sandals are appropriate for you, please check with your podiatrist. I encourage patients to bring in one bag of shoes on our appointments so that I can physically check the shoe and have a discussion about whether or not the shoe is appropriate for their particular foot type and issue. 

For more information, please use the search box to look up these two articles:

"My feet hurt: top ten things to do to alleviate foot pain today."

and

"Shoe recommendations for patients recovering from Lisfranc's injuries." 

Have a wonderful day!

Dr. Cathleen A. McCarthy

:)

Podiatrist Recommended Women's Sandals for Spring 2012

Podiatrist Recommended

Women's Sandals for 

Spring 2012

***

Aravon Katy
$134


This is a great sandal that can be found at most New Balance stores. The thick rigid sole offers maximal protection to the foot and I love the soft footbed, which offers decent arch support. The forefoot, midfoot and rearfoot control offers biomechanical control, which helps decrease pain, chance of injury and mechanical strain.

 Naot Jive 
$107

Gotta' love the Naots! A bit more of a casual look but the rigid sole combined with the soft footbed and solid forefoot, midfoot and rearfoot strapping is great for biomechanically controlling for the foot, which dramatically improves comfort to not just the foot - but also the knees, hips & lower back. 


 

 Wolky Cloggy
$169

The Wolky line of shoes offers high quality shoes with excellent biomechanical control for the foot and ankle. One of my favorite aspects of this sandal is the thick rigid sole that is protective of the joints. The footbed is soft and has fabulous arch support. It's an expensive sandal but consider it a solid investment in your foot health!

Alegria Kleo
$108


I'm a big fan of all of the Alegria shoes that have rearfoot strapping! Don't be fooled and get the shoes or sandals that don't have rearfoot strapping or control - you will be cheating yourself of comfort. This sandal has an awesome thick and rigid sole with a soft footbed with good arch support. As long as you also have rearfoot control, this sandal will increase comfort, decrease chance of injury and cause less "wear and tear" on the foot and ankle joints.

 

These Four Sandals ARE Recommended for Patients with:

*Heel Pain

*Osteoarthritis

*Rheumatoid

*Hallux Limitus (Limited Range of Motion across the 1st Toe Joint)

*Morton's Neuroma

*Mild to Moderate Hammertoes

*Metatarsalgia

*Mild Tailor's Bunions

*Mild Bunions

*Mild Achilles Tendonitis

*Tendonitis

*Fibroma's on the bottom of the foot

*Flat Feet

*Hypermobility (Ligament Laxity)

*Corns & Calluses

*Ingrown Toenails

These Sandals are NOT Recommended for Patients with:

*Diabetics

*Neuropathy (Nerve Damage)

*Peripheral Arterial Disease

*History of Ulcerations 

*Charcot Foot 

*Severe Ankle Instability 

Hope all is well,

Dr. Cathleen A. McCarthy 

:)

"Anne's Wide Shoes" at NE corner of Bell and 59th Ave.

This independently owned and operated shoe store specializes in providing shoes for people who need wider fitting shoes - from Men's size 7-16 EEE-EEEEEE and Ladies size 5-13 D-EEEE.

WOLKY:

Wow! This is an impressive line of shoes/sandals that were designed by a Dutch Podiatrist. The have rigid soles with cushioned (although non-removable) insoles and I think they look pretty darn nice. 

Recommended for patients with: mild to severe hammertoes, mild to moderate bunions (may need some stretching of the leather which can be done at the store or in our office), metatarsalgia, tendonitis, LisFranc Joint Injury, osteoarthritis, Rheumatoid patients, forefoot and midfoot mild to moderate degenerative joint disease (depending on the patient and location of the problem), mild to moderate Tailor's bunions, sesmoiditis and mild to moderate Morton's Neuromas. 

Not Recommended for patients with: Diabetes or peripheral neuropathy, Charcot foot, severe bunions, and severe Tailor's bunion. 

This line of shoes/sandals are rated a solid Nine-Toe rating (from zero-toes "arch enemy" to ten-toes "foot friendly"). 

**The Wolky Liana is the #1 seller for comfortable slip on sandals. It has adjustable straps, which is very helpful for patients suffering with bunions/bump pain. It has a cushioned insole and sells for $129. 

The ARAVON.

Also very impressive! This is another sandal/shoe that has a rigid sole with a cushioned insert and decent arch support. The insole is removable so that you can replace it with either a custom molded orthotic or a more aggressive over-the-counter insert with more arch support. Aravon is a division of New Balance, which is one of the few shoe companies that engages in active research and development to create a better shoe. 

The recommendations and non-recommendations are approximately the same as the Wolky (see above). 

Cost: approx $134

LA PLUME

A special shout out on this one to patients with large bunions!! This is technically not the best or most supportive sandals out there but the sandal has a soft, stretchy fabric over the bunion area that will put less pressure on the bunions. The sandal is made in Italy and has a removable insert so that you can put in a custom molded orthotic or a more aggressive over the counter insert. The insert that comes with the shoe is very decent and has some arch support. Although the sandal does not have rearfoot control/strapping - it could be an excellent shoe for people with bunions for light activities or around the house. 

I give this a Six to Seven-Toe Rating on a scale from zero to ten for most patients but for patients with bunions - this could be a Nine-Toe Rating...

Okay, Bunion patients, you may not like this one but...

SOFT-SPOT SUPREMES

Not the prettiest shoe you've ever seen but if you have painful hammertoes or bunions this is an excellent shoe for more intense walking activities that you may want to do. It is an extra-depth shoe that will give more room to forefoot problems such as hammertoes and bunions. Keep in mind, that if you still need more room in the forefoot area, the shoe can be stretched to further accommodate any problem areas (can be stretched in the store or at our office). You're going to see this shoe and not want to buy it but I would say to you - buy a Wolky or Aravon for more dressy occasions and then purchase this shoe for when you hit the casino's or or the Mall for some power shopping. Remember, even if you have a shoe that's not so easy on the eyes and you don't want to wear it because it's not "pretty enough" - if it improves your quality of life by allowing you to do more and stay active, than put on the shoes and get out there and have some fun!!! Live life to the fullest - even if you have to do it in some funky shoes...

I give this shoe a Nine-Toe Rating...

**Annette and Erin run the store and are very knowledgeable about the shoes and will happy to help you. Please support them as small independently owned shoe stores that specialize in people with special foot needs are hard to find and, when we do find one (like this one), we want to support them.

Have a great day!