By Dr Alexandra Buk Summertime is here, and so are the sunny days splashing in pools, boating, fishing and relaxing by the lake. As many outdoor enthusiasts know, summer can cause some extra wear and tear on the body. Educated consumers usually protect themselves by purchasing sunscreen, lip balms, and sunglasses. But many of us [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/141/summer-foot-care-and-sandal-tips

By Dr Alexandra Buk With summer upon us and our thoughts focused on getting out of the house and enjoying the season, getting our feet ready for flip flops and sandals becomes a high priority. However, when you head off to the salon for a pedicure or when you take out your own scissors and [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/143/summer-is-here-get-ready-to-show-those-toes

Morton’s neuroma is an incredibly painful condition affecting the foot. It is a thickening or swelling of the sensory nerve that runs between the toes. The swelling is usually caused by irritation to the nerve by a neighboring ligament or base of the toe bone. Women seem to experience neuromas more often than men, so [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/285/understanding-neuromas

Footworks – May 2010 By Dr Alexandra Buk Each day, with every step you take, your big toe bears a tremendous amount of stress- a force equal to about twice your body weight. Most of us don’t realize exactly how much we use our big toe. We tend to take it for granted, unless a [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/83/hallux-rigidus-a-disorder-of-the-joint-located-at-the-base-of-the-big-toe

Bunions occur when the joint of the big toe becomes misaligned, causing swelling and tenderness. There is usually a bump or enlargement on the outside of the joint that makes it difficult to find a comfortable shoe. The deformity causes the big toe to angle towards the smaller toes, causing crowding. A bunion deformity is [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/269/facts-about-bunions

Gout, a type of arthritis, is a painful joint inflammation caused by an excess of uric acid in the body. When your body produces more uric acid than the kidneys can process, the excess builds up in the blood and accumulates in your joints. The disease bothers more than 1.8 million Americans, mostly men over [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/279/gout-a-real-pain-in-the-foot

When plantar warts develop on the weight-bearing areas of the feet – the ball of the foot or the heel – they can be the source of very sharp, burning pain. They are caused by a virus that typically invades the skin through small cuts and abrasions. They are called plantar warts because the appear [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/275/dont-ignore-warts

Hammertoe is a bending of one or both of the joints in the second, third, fourth and fifth toes of the foot. This abnormal bending can put pressure on the toe when wearing shoes causing problems to develop. Hammertoes usually start out as mild deformities and get progressively worse over time. In the early stages, [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/271/options-for-hammertoe

By Dr Alexandra Buk A diabetic foot ulcer is an open sore or wound that most commonly occurs on the bottom of the foot in approximately 15% of patients with diabetes. Of those who develop a foot ulcer, 6% will be hospitalized due to infection or other ulcer-related complications. Diabetes is the leading cause of [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/113/healing-the-diabetic-foot-ulcer-new-hope

By Dr Alexandra Buk Peripheral Arterial Disease-also known as P.A.D. – is a common, yet serious, disease that affects 8 to 12 million people in the United States, especially those over age 50. It develops when extra cholesterol and other fats circulating in the blood collect in the walls of the arteries that supply blood [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/105/peripheral-arterial-disease

By Dr Alexandra Buk Like many recurring conditions, corns are often ignored as a “skin problem.” But left untreated, corns can progress to a painful and chronic condition. A corn is a circular area of thick skin caused by friction on a non-weight bearing area of the foot. The lesions most commonly form over an [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/92/corns-are-more-than-skin-deep

By Alexandra Buk, D.P.M. “I have heel pain” is a comment that I, as a podiatric Physician, hear every day. Patients complain that their heels and arches ache when they get out of bed in the morning, or after they’ve been sitting for a while and get back on their feet again. Heel pain, most [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/77/there-is-hope-for-heel-pain

By Dr Alexandra Buk The Achilles tendon is the strongest tendon in the body, and it is located in one of the most overused and under-appreciated body parts – the foot. Because the foot is subjected to great amounts of stress every day (while walking the pressure on each foot can be twice normal body [...]

http://arkfac.com/articles/66/all-about-achilles

Gout is the result of the buildup of uric acid in the tissues of a joint, most often the big-toe joint. An attack of gout can be miserable, marked by intense pain that comes on suddenly (usually in the middle of the night) and redness, swelling and warmth over a joint. Uric acid is normally [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/281/what-causes-gout

Footworks February 2010 Dr Alexandra Buk Dry Skin and Winter Itch Colder temperatures each winter bring many Americans one big problem: dry, cracked skin. Those itchy, dry patches are nature’s way of letting us know that the outer layer of our skin, made up of dead skin cells, natural oils and lipids (fats), needs help. [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/128/winterize-your-feet-cold-weather-tips-for-your-feet

Footworks January 2010 By Dr Alexandra Buk What is Sesamoid? A sesamoid is a bone imbedded in a tendon. Sesamoids are found in several joints in the body. The largest is the kneecap, or patella, which is a sesamoid bone imbedded in the quadriceps tendon at the knee. In the foot, the sesamoids are two [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/109/sesamoid-injuries-in-the-foot

Footworks November 2009 By Dr Alexandra Buk Diabetes is a serious disease that can develop from the lack of insulin production in the body or due to the inability of the body’s insulin to perform its normal, everyday functions. Insulin is a substance produced from the pancreas gland that helps process the food we eat [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/120/diabetes-and-your-feet

Footworks September 2009 By Dr Alexandra Buk What is a Tailor’s Bunion? Tailors bunion, also called a bunionette, is an enlargement of the fifth metatarsal bone at the base of the little toe. The metatarsals are the five long bones of the foot. The enlargement that characterizes a tailor’s bunion occurs at the metatarsal “head,” [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/86/what-is-a-tailors-bunion

Footworks July 2009 What To Do About Splinters The warm, sunny weather is an invitation for us to shed our shoes and socks and run barefoot. But doing so can be risky since running or walking can lead to problems for your feet. Needles, broken glass, small tacks, hairs, or splinters of wood can be [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/139/summer-foot-safety

Footworks May 2009 By Alexandra Buk, DPM The tarsal tunnel, or tarsal canal, is a narrow space that lies on the inside of the ankle next to the ankle bones. The tunnel is covered with a thick ligament (the flexor retinaculum) that protects and maintains the structures contained within the tunnel-arteries, veins, tendons, and nerves. [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/101/what-is-tarsal-tunnel-syndrome

Footworks December 2008 By Dr Alexandra Buk Many adults complain of having painful feet due to “fallen arches.” But is it true that years of wear and tear on the feet can actually cause arches to flatten over time? Flatfoot in adults is a complex disorder, with varying symptoms and degrees of severity. Although there [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/95/do-arches-really-fall

Ingrown toenails are nails whose corners or sides dig painfully into the soft tissue of nail grooves, often leading to irritation, redness and swelling. Toenails usually grow straight out. However, sometimes one or both corners or sides curve and grow into the flesh. The big toe is the most likely victim, but other toes can [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/262/treating-ingrown-toenails

The Arkansas Foot and Ankle Clinic, established in 1966, is the largest and most comprehensive provider of lower extremity care in central Arkansas. All of our surgeons are board certified and work toward the common goal of providing the highest standard of care for your family. We treat the entire spectrum of foot and ankle [...]

http://arkfac.com/learn-more/1/about-the-arkansas-foot-and-ankle-clinic