Custom Orthotics
Orthotics are custom made devices are worn in your shoes that provide proper support to all the right areas of your feet, helping them to function more efficiently. It is often so difficult to really get the proper support you need from the foot ware available on the shoe market these days. More and more people are turning to custom orthotics to help give them foot stability and comfort.
Prescription orthotics may help relieve your pain by realigning and stabilizing the bones and different arches in your feet, therefore restoring your natural walking pattern. By providing a solid base of support, orthotics can affect the alignment of the rest of your body. So it not surprising that orthotics work so well with chiropractic care!
Your foot is in contact with the ground for about .8 of a second when walking and about .25 seconds when running. Imagine trying to determine normal or abnormal foot function with the naked eye in a quarter of a second? This is too difficult for even the most experienced practitioner.
At Pemberton Valley Wellness, we use a state of the art computer hardware and software system called The GaitScan™ that helps your health care practitioner assess and analyze your feet. This analysis combined with your practitioners’ experience and knowledge detects abnormal foot function which may be affecting your feet or other parts of your body.
The GaitScan™ records your timing sequences during gait as you walk across the pressure plate. This enables your practitioner to have a clear picture of your foot mechanics and determine whether you would benefit from wearing custom made foot orthotics.
How does gait scan work?
1) Scans the foot
As you walk across the pressure plate, thousands of tiny sensors capture the distribution of pressure of your foot over time.
2) Maps Foot Pressure
From your step, the computer displays 2D and 3D visual representations of the pressure under your foot. You can see where you have too much or too little pressure.
3) Prints a Report
The information is then summarized in a report that can be printed for you and your health care practitioner to see. The report findings will help your practitioner evaluate your foot function and determine if the pain you are experiencing is related to faulty foot function.
4) Determines the need for Orthotic Therapy
The information from this report will assist your health care practitioner to determine if you need orthotic therapy. They will combine this technical information with their examination results and discuss with you if orthotics are the right solution for your problem.
5) Data is sent to the Lab
When it is determined that you will benefit from orthotic therapy your information is then sent securely to The Orthotic Group laboratory. From there, your custom made orthotics are manufactured specifically for you and your feet.
What types of orthotics are there?
Sport: Orthotics designed for running shoes and for people who want them for sport related activities. ( ie. soccer, court, hockey)
Dress: Designed primarily for women who are wearing slim fitting or narrow dress shoes
Casual: For people who want orthotics for a variety of shoes
Specialty: Several kinds of specialty orthotics:
Diabetic orthotics which help diabetics who have sensitive feet
Children’s orthotics specially engineered for your child
Steel toe/composite safety boots which are engineered for the patient who is in rugged environments, on their feet all day and want the ultimate in comfort and support.
