Aberrant Upper Cervical Arthrokinematics can cause Foot Pain
Male, Age 29, Case of Achilles Tendonitis, Uneven Running Gait
This 29‑year‑old runner had run during high school and college, but had to stop in recent years due to chronic achilles tendonitis. He had tried many forms of treatment but was unable to alleviate the pain unless he stopped running altogether. He also described himself an having an "uneven gait" when he ran. He claimed that he felt like he struck harder on one leg compared to the other side.
During his initial examination, a spinal injury was discovered, with the primary site located at his upper neck. The neck injury was causing his spine and pelvis to shift into a stressed, weakened posture, that was putting greater pressure on one leg compared to the other. After having his neck injury corrected, all Achilles pain healed and remained absent so that he was able to once again resume running 60 miles per week.
(Remember the old song, “…your foot bone’s connected to your shin bone and your shin bone’s connected to…” Eventually you start to see that the whole body is connected. An area as profound neurologically for balance mechanisms as the upper cervical spine makes it very clear how a problem here could be a factor in someone’s foot problems.)
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