As licensed podiatrists, our goal is to provide the highest quality of care for our patients. In order to begin an effective podiatry treatment program and ensure positive results, our approach involves providing our patients with the information they need to make good choices about their foot and ankle care.
Magic Triad of Treatment
The Magic Triad of Treatment is simple, but it breaks down and organizes our process of thinking and the direction of the approach to our treatment when seeing our patients.
The Magic Triad of Treatment involves 3 key things:
1. Address Inflammation
This stage begins with immediately treating the injured or infected area by utilizing medication, oral medication, topical and/or steroidal treatments.
2. Address Origin
The next stage of the triad is to determine the origin of the injury as it relates to trauma. We determine the category of trauma as being either Macro-Trauma or Micro-Trauma.
- Macro-Trauma injuries happen when a single impact of force causes a severe ankle sprain or fracture of the bone.
- Micro-Trauma refers to overuse injuries. Overuse injuries are a result of repeated impacts that exceed the ability to withstand them. Frequent overuse injuries that we see in patients usually involve bone (stress fractures, tendon, Achilles Tendonitis), fascia (plantar fasciitis), and ligaments (ACL sprain).
In cases of micro-traumas we tend to utilize a customized approach to treatment where we can apply or prescribe custom orthotics, therapy and the use of proper shoe gear. Please note that an orthotic that you buy off the shelves at a local store is not a custom orthotic. Orthotics should be fitted to each individual.
3. Stretching
The last part of the triad involves stretching. We recommend the use of static stretching and yoga. In instances where a physical therapist is needed, Barrett Podiatry can recommend a highly experienced physical therapist to treat you.
Please note: it is not recommended to stretch the overused area until the inflammation has been dealt with and the trauma that was experienced has subsided. Stretching can slow down or even halt the healing process.