At this point in time our clinic is open. We have implemented increased sanitation protocols and have limited scheduling to help ensure there is no traffic in our waiting room. Furthermore, if you have travelled outside of Alberta in the last 14 days or have symptoms such as: cough, fever, sore throat or similar issues we cannot see you in our clinic at this point in time. Please call our office or 811 for further information.

Custom Foot Orthotics

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These are highly specialized medical devices that allow the joints and bones of the foot to function in a more stable position while standing and especially while in motion. Orthotics help control each phase of the gait cycle, from the moment your heel contacts the ground through stance phase and up to the point when your toes push off.

Common Conditions

Common conditions treated with foot orthotics include:
At the Strathcona Foot & Ankle Clinic, our podiatrists can help you decide if Custom Orthotics may help you. We make both functional orthotics and accommodative orthotics.
  • Accommodative orthotics are used to distribute body weight away from a painful area, such as a corn, callus, or bony prominence.
  • Functional orthotics are designed to prevent pain during ambulation, as well as to limit or prevent pathologic range of motion in the joints of the foot.
With both types of orthotics, there are many different materials which can be used in the fabrication of the devices, and our podiatrists can help you choose what will work best for you to suit your individual needs.
While each individual may have a slightly different experience, there are some basic steps in the making of custom foot orthotics:
  1. After reviewing your history, and performing a lower extremity examination (including a biomechanical exam and gait evaluation), a mold of your feet will be taken. Our podiatrists will generally take a neutral-suspension non-weight bearing impression of your feet. This can be done with a variety of modalities, but will generally either be a plaster cast, or a 3 dimension volumetric scan using our laser foot scanner.
  2. Once your foot images and/or impressions have been captured, our podiatrists will make a detailed prescription with instructions for the laboratory to use to make any desired corrections to the molds/images to meet your specific needs.
  3. Fabrication of the custom medical devices by a professional certified orthotic lab according to your needs as outlined in your prescription. Our clinic uses several labs to ensure all unique needs of our patients can be satisfied
  4. Follow up visit with your podiatrist to ensure proper fitting of your custom foot orthotics. This is often a very brief visit, but it is important to make sure the orthotics will meet your needs.