Cartilage duplication is not yet possible. In the last 20 years pieces of joint cartilage have been harvested but the resultant growth for re-implantation has been less than ideal. Our normal cartilage has stratified layers. Getting the stratification the same has been the let down in cartilage stem cell duplication. The total ankle replacement has been more sucessfull and can be considered when the ankle arthritis is limiting and painful enough.

Fungus is ubiquitous especially in warm moist shoes. So it can be treated by laser, or medication, but it can and does recur. Laser treatment works, but it is very costly and not covered by insurances. One can spend upwards to $1000 to cure the nails. However the patient has to continue to either treat the nails with topicals and shoe treatment or be lasered again in a year. Insurance will help with removal of fungal nails and/or the oral medical treatment at less cost to the patient. Regardless of the treatment, it has to be checked regularly for recurrence and prevented.

A common procedure for correction of a hammertoe--a contracted digit that often rubs in the shoe causing painful corns--is to take out part of the bent knuckle re-shaping it so the toe will lie flat.  A external pin has been commonly used to stabilize the toe while scar tissue makes the joint relatively stiff. This meant protecting a pin sticking out of the toe, usually bent and capped, for 3-8 weeks. Recently, a number of internal absorbable and non-absorbable pins have been developed to avoid the pins stcking out of the toes. For more information, please contact our office.

I saw the movie, "The Long Walk" last night. It was hard to fathom one escaping from a Siberian Gulag prison and walking through the cold Russian forests, Mongolian Gobi desert, Tibet and the Himalayans, finding freedom in northern India. 4000 miles of walking over a year! This story has been challenged (see Wikepedia link). There were other stories of escapees from the tortuous Siberian prisons making their way to freedom. This occurred during Stalin's regime in the earlier part of World War II. A lot of sore and swollen feet. The movie is OK for the geography and history lesson, the National Geographic helped sponsor it.

Want to lessen your chance of sports injury? Consider racewalking over running. There is a Kansas City organization always open to new members: the Heartland Racewalkers. They meet weekly on Saturday mornings at the Health Plus gym at 435 and Roe. Running puts more stress on the joints because all your weight (with momentum) lands on one leg. Racewalking requires both feet to be on the ground thus decreasing the force on the joints. For more information check their website: www.heartlandracewalkers.com .