Our Services / Orthotics

If you experience foot, heel, or leg pain, and it doesn’t improve with at-home care, consider custom orthotics. At NYC Footcare PC, foot and ankle surgeons Paul Drucker, DPM, and Jarret Drucker, DPM, AACFAS, and the team design and manufacture custom orthotics for people of all ages. The practice has multiple offices on the Upper East Side at 60th and 70th Street in New York City, with additional offices in Jamaica, Queens, and Plainview, New York, and a surgical center in Fair Lawn, New Jersey. Schedule your appointment by calling the nearest office or booking online today.

What are orthotics?

Orthotics are shoe inserts prescribed by your podiatrist. They look similar to insoles you’d find at the grocery store but are designed to the unique curvature of your feet. That ensures they reduce uncomfortable symptoms, enhance your mobility, and improve your quality of life.

What conditions can benefit from orthotics?

At NYC Footcare PC, the team uses orthotics to treat various conditions, including:

• Arthritis
• Bunions
• Bursitis
• Diabetes
• Flat feet
• Heel spurs
• High arches
• Plantar fasciitis

You might also be a candidate for orthotics if you suffer a sport or work-related injury that doesn’t respond to conservative treatments, like ice, rest, and elevation.

What are the types of orthotics?

The team at NYC Footcare PC offers several types of orthotics, including:

Rigid orthotics

Rigid orthotics are stiff and made from inflexible materials like plastic and carbon fiber. These orthotics fit inside of close-toed shoes. They’re designed to relieve aches and pains, as well as stress on the muscles, tendons, and ligaments in your feet.

Accommodative orthotics

Accommodative orthotics feature soft, cushion-like materials that take pressure off corns, blisters, or diabetic ulcers. Accommodative orthotics are bulkier than rigid orthotics, so you might need to wear them with prescription shoes.

What is the process for getting orthotics?

Before recommending orthotics, your NYC Footcare PC provider reviews your medical records and asks about your symptoms, including when the pain started, if it extends into other parts of your body, and if certain activities make it worse.

Next, your provider asks you to remove your shoes and socks. Then, they examine your feet, heels, and toes, looking for signs of swelling, bruising, or redness. Your provider also assesses your gait and posture and has you do a series of easy exercises to observe your range of motion.

If your provider identifies an underlying problem, like plantar fasciitis or a bone spur, you qualify for treatment. The team takes a negative impression/cast of your feet that is then used by the lab to create a positive model. Technicians at the orthotic lab then use the model to manufacture a pair of custom orthotics that fit perfectly and  help to maintain the integrity of the osseous and ligamentous structures of the foot and reduce abnormal  forces during the gait cycle. Often accomodations are added to address specific areas of high pressure and limited motion.

When the lab finishes your orthotics about a week later, you return to NYC Footcare PC and try them on. Break-in instructions are expalined and simple adjustments may be made to fit the devices into your shoes.

How long do orthotics last?

Orthotics typically last two or three years*. You’ll know it’s time for new ones when they start wearing down, or you begin experiencing symptoms like pain and mobility issues.

To see if you’re a candidate for orthotics, make an appointment at NYC Footcare PC by calling the nearest office or booking online today.

*Individual results may vary.