Cracked Heels - Helpful Tips to Solve This Problem (Fissures)
Posted: Sunday, July 19, 2009
by Karen Webb
Webbs Podiatry
Cracked heels or heel fissures as they are also
known, are a thickening of the skin on the heel of your foot, mainly
caused by excessively dry skin, this may aggravate thick, brittle
calluses on your heels. Fissures are a common foot problem, and
although not usually dangerous they can be extremely painful. Cracks
can develop quite quickly.
Simply standing or walking can deepen
the fissures, causing them to become deeper, increasingly sore, and
maybe even infected. Infection can cause serious problems if you have a
chronic condition such as diabetes, or a lowered immune response, often
due to illness or age.
Common causes of Fissures are:
- Some skin conditions such as psoriasis and eczema.
- Age.
- Thyroid disease.
- Prolonged standing.
- Being overweight.
- Ill-fitting and open back shoes.
- Diabetes.
- Flat feet.
- Athletes foot.
- Heel spurs.
- Inactive sweat glands.
Symptoms of Fissures can include:
- Itchy skin.
- Skin that has pealed or cracked.
- Hard skin at the outer edge of the heel.
- Flaky or red patches to the heel.
- Dark or yellow skin on the heel.
- Pain while walking.
Helping to prevent or cracked heels:
- Avoid wearing open backed shoes.
- Moisturise your feet regularly.
- Use a good quality foot moisturiser, such as CCS cream.
- Avoid having bath water too hot, as this can dry out your feet.
Self treatment of cracked heels:
You can use a pumice stone to reduce the thickness of the hard skin. It is also important to moisturise the foot by applying CCS cream or other oil based foot cream twice a day.
Podiatric treatment of Fissures:
- Investigating the cause.
- Advice regarding footwear and self help.
- Debriding (Removing) the hard skin, to enable healing.
- Prescription for any necessary cream / emollient.
- If very painful, strapping may be used to hold the cracks together whilst they heal.
- A heel cup may be used to help to keep the heel in place. This is useful in the prevention of cracked heels.
- Prescription orthoses to re-balance the feet.
- Click here for more information on CCS Cream.
Copyright © Karen Webb 2009Common causes of Fissures are:
- Some skin conditions such as psoriasis and eczema.
- Age.
- Thyroid disease.
- Prolonged standing.
- Being overweight.
- Ill-fitting and open back shoes.
- Diabetes.
- Flat feet.
- Athletes foot.
- Heel spurs.
- Inactive sweat glands.
Symptoms of Fissures can include:
- Itchy skin.
- Skin that has pealed or cracked.
- Hard skin at the outer edge of the heel.
- Flaky or red patches to the heel.
- Dark or yellow skin on the heel.
- Pain while walking.
Helping to prevent or cracked heels:
- Avoid wearing open backed shoes.
- Moisturise your feet regularly.
- Use a good quality foot moisturiser, such as CCS cream.
- Avoid having bath water too hot, as this can dry out your feet.
Self treatment of cracked heels:
You can use a pumice stone to reduce the thickness of the hard skin. It is also important to moisturise the foot by applying CCS cream or other oil based foot cream twice a day.
Podiatric treatment of Fissures:
- Investigating the cause.
- Advice regarding footwear and self help.
- Debriding (Removing) the hard skin, to enable healing.
- Prescription for any necessary cream / emollient.
- If very painful, strapping may be used to hold the cracks together whilst they heal.
- A heel cup may be used to help to keep the heel in place. This is useful in the prevention of cracked heels.
- Prescription orthoses to re-balance the feet.
- Click here for more information on CCS Cream.
This Article has been viewed 1,140 times. (Not updated in real-time.)
No comments yet.We want your comments! If you can read this, you don't have javascript enabled, so you can't use this comment system. Please enable javascript.