How Orthoses Ease Foot Pain

Your feet take a pounding-literally-every time you take a step. And its not just your feet that feel the stress. The joints in your ankles, knees, and hips also absorb some of the shock as well. For arthritis sufferers, that stress often also comes with pain. But specialized shoe inserts, called foot orthoses, could ease the stress, helping many who suffer from arthritis in their lower extremities to walk with less pain and more confidence. "If you can limit those ground-reaction forces-the way your body hits the ground-you can help reduce the pain in the foot and other joints in the leg, even up through the lower back," says David Baty, Chief of Prosthetics and Orthotics at Cleveland Clinic.