If you’ve ever been told you overpronate, have flat feet, or walk with an unusual gait, custom orthotics may have come up as a solution. But for a lot of people, it’s hard to understand what a shoe insert could actually do for pain that feels like a much bigger problem.
The short answer is quite a bit. At Foot and Ankle Institute of Colorado in Colorado Springs, Colorado, podiatrists Matthew Hinderland, DPM, Jordan Cameron, DPM, Trevor Whiting, DPM, and Shane Soto, DPM, fit patients with custom orthotics to correct the mechanical issues that cause foot pain, and the effects often reach further up the body than most patients expect.
Here’s what you need to know about how they work and whether they might be right for you.
Walk into any pharmacy and you’ll find a wall of gel inserts and arch supports. They’re inexpensive and easy to grab, but they’re designed around a generic foot shape — not yours.
Custom orthotics are medical devices made from a mold of your individual foot. Our team evaluates your foot structure, gait mechanics, and the specific conditions affecting you before designing an orthotic that addresses your exact needs.
The materials, arch height, heel cup depth, and overall shape are all built around how your foot moves.
Every step you take sends force up through your foot, ankle, knee, hip, and lower back. When your feet aren’t aligned properly, that force gets absorbed unevenly and, over time, certain structures take on more stress than they should.
Custom orthotics reposition your foot in a way that encourages better alignment throughout your entire lower body. Depending on your condition, they may:
The changes can be subtle at first, but patients often notice reduced pain and less fatigue within a few weeks of consistent wear.
Custom orthotics aren’t a one-size-fits-all solution, and they aren’t only for people with serious foot problems. Our team recommends them for a range of conditions that affect how you move, such as:
Plantar fasciitis causes pain along the bottom of your foot, particularly near your heel. It develops when the plantar fascia — a big band of tissue connecting your heel to your toes — becomes inflamed from overuse or poor foot mechanics.
Orthotics can offload pressure from the plantar fascia and provide the arch support needed to reduce strain.
Diabetes can affect circulation and nerve function in your feet, which makes foot health especially important for people managing the condition. Reduced sensation means small pressure points or areas of friction can go unnoticed and worsen over time.
Custom orthotics help distribute weight evenly across the foot to minimize pressure hotspots and reduce the risk of sores or ulcers developing.
Both flat feet and high arches alter how your foot contacts the ground, which shifts the load onto structures that weren’t meant to bear it. Flat feet tend to cause overpronation, where the ankle rolls inward, while high arches often lead to supination, where weight shifts to the outer edge of the foot.
The Achilles tendon connects your calf muscles to your heel bone, and repetitive strain can cause it to become painful and inflamed. A slight heel lift built into your orthotic reduces the distance the tendon has to stretch with each step, which takes tension off the tendon while it heals.
Getting fitted for custom orthotics starts with a thorough evaluation. Our team examines your foot structure, watches how you walk, and discusses your symptoms and activity level. In some cases, we use imaging to get a clearer picture of what’s happening beneath the surface.
From there, we take a mold or digital scan of your foot and send it to a lab that fabricates your orthotics. There’s typically a short adjustment period as your body adapts to the new support, and our team follows up to make sure the fit is working as expected.
If you have foot pain that hasn’t improved with rest or over-the-counter solutions, custom orthotics may be worth exploring. Call our office at 719-488-4664, or use our online booking feature to schedule a consultation with our team today.
