Causes
How We Can Help You for Cavus Foot
Our doctors have the specialized training and experience needed to precisely diagnose and effectively treat all cartilage injuries.
We deliver world-class care and offer all available therapies for this condition of unusually high arches in one or both feet, causing instability, tension, and pain. Our team develops a care plan personalized to your unique condition and needs. Team members include specialists in orthopaedics and, if your condition is related to a neurological disorder, neurologists and other highly trained professionals as well.
Collaborating closely, our world-class doctors emphasize noninvasive treatment whenever possible. Options may include customized inserts and supportive shoes. In some cases, your doctor may recommend bracing. When necessary, we also perform all forms of foot surgery, from the common to the most complex.
In addition, Stanford Health Care patients with cavus foot may have opportunities to join research studies of new treatments not yet available anywhere else.
What We Offer You for Cavus Foot
- Specialized expertise from one of the world’s leading programs focused on diagnosing and treating cavus foot.
- Team-based treatment planning that brings together highly experienced specialists who create a comprehensive care plan personalized to your unique needs.
- Advanced treatment options, always emphasizing the least invasive approaches possible but also providing state-of-the-art surgery whenever needed.
- Full support that includes care planning and follow-up as well as strategies to prevent cavus foot symptoms from getting worse.
- Clinical trial opportunities to join research studies of new innovations in the management of cavus foot.
- Ease of access with highly trained specialists conveniently located close to where you work or live.
Treatments for Cavus Foot
People with cavus foot have unusually high arches in one or both feet. As a result, too much weight falls on the ball and heel of the foot, causing foot pain and instability. Cavus foot can be an inherited structural problem, but it often results from a neurological disorder.
The Stanford orthopaedic team has the training and expertise to treat cavus foot and a range of related issues. Our orthopaedic specialists evaluate your symptoms and discuss the options with you to determine the best course of treatment. If your condition is related to a neurological disorder, your orthopaedist will consult with a neurologist before starting any treatment.
Stanford’s orthopaedic specialists provide expert care for cavus foot, including advanced surgical procedures when necessary.
Nonsurgical Treatment
Surgery
Nonsurgical treatment options may include:
Custom orthotic inserts
A customized device that you wear inside your shoe can provide support for high arches and improve stability.
Supportive footwear
Wearing shoes with good arch and ankle support, as well as wider heels, can help stabilize your feet.
Bracing
For more severe cases, your doctor may recommend a brace to stabilize your foot and ankle.
Depending on the cause and severity of your symptoms, you may need surgery to reduce pain and improve function and mobility. Stanford’s highly trained orthopaedic surgeons have experience in the latest surgical procedures, using minimally invasive techniques whenever possible. Your doctor may recommend a procedure such as:
Tendon release
An orthopaedic surgeon surgically releases tendons on the outside of the ankle to help relieve tension and relax the foot.
Plantar fascia release
In this procedure, we make small cuts in fibers that make up the plantar fascia (a ligament running underneath the arch of the foot). We can often perform this procedure using endoscopy, a minimally invasive technique that uses a small camera to see inside your foot.
Tendon transfer
Cavus foot can lead to foot drop, a weakness in the muscles that causes the foot to drag. We might address this by transferring tendons from stronger muscles to weaker ones to help improve muscle balance and foot function.
Dorsiflexion osteotomy
This procedure repositions the first metatarsal (the bones of the big toe) to help slightly flatten an overly high arch.
Bone fusion
If one or more of your foot joints are damaged, we may need to fuse the bones in the joint together to prevent it from moving. This procedure can lessen pain and make your joint more stable.
Toe surgery
People with cavus foot often have hammertoes (sharply bent toes) or claw toes (toes clenched like a fist). We can perform surgery to reposition the affected toes.
Nonsurgical treatment options may include:
Custom orthotic inserts
A customized device that you wear inside your shoe can provide support for high arches and improve stability.
Supportive footwear
Wearing shoes with good arch and ankle support, as well as wider heels, can help stabilize your feet.
Bracing
For more severe cases, your doctor may recommend a brace to stabilize your foot and ankle.
close Nonsurgical Treatment
Depending on the cause and severity of your symptoms, you may need surgery to reduce pain and improve function and mobility. Stanford’s highly trained orthopaedic surgeons have experience in the latest surgical procedures, using minimally invasive techniques whenever possible. Your doctor may recommend a procedure such as:
Tendon release
An orthopaedic surgeon surgically releases tendons on the outside of the ankle to help relieve tension and relax the foot.
Plantar fascia release
In this procedure, we make small cuts in fibers that make up the plantar fascia (a ligament running underneath the arch of the foot). We can often perform this procedure using endoscopy, a minimally invasive technique that uses a small camera to see inside your foot.
Tendon transfer
Cavus foot can lead to foot drop, a weakness in the muscles that causes the foot to drag. We might address this by transferring tendons from stronger muscles to weaker ones to help improve muscle balance and foot function.
Dorsiflexion osteotomy
This procedure repositions the first metatarsal (the bones of the big toe) to help slightly flatten an overly high arch.
Bone fusion
If one or more of your foot joints are damaged, we may need to fuse the bones in the joint together to prevent it from moving. This procedure can lessen pain and make your joint more stable.
Toe surgery
People with cavus foot often have hammertoes (sharply bent toes) or claw toes (toes clenched like a fist). We can perform surgery to reposition the affected toes.
close Surgery
INTERESTED IN AN ONLINE SECOND OPINION?
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Visit our online second opinion page to learn more.
Clinical Trials
Clinical trials are research studies that evaluate a new medical approach, device, drug, or other treatment. As a Stanford Health Care patient, you may be eligible to participate in open clinical trials.
Open trials refer to studies that are currently recruiting participants or that may recruit participants in the near future.
What is Cavus Foot?
Our Clinics
Our service offers easy access to innovative foot and ankle care personalized to your needs. Our team seamlessly coordinates complete services to diagnose and treat the full spectrum of foot and ankle conditions, from the common to those so complex.
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