According to www.insidehoops.com, seven foot center Brendan Haywood will miss the remainder of the NBA season after being diagnosed with a stress reaction in his left foot.

When too much stress is placed on a foot bone during walking or sports, the lining of the bone can become irritated and inflamed.  If the foot continues to be stressed, this can result in what is known as a stress fracture or a broken bone.

In my Toronto podiatry office I see this most commonly in one of the five long bones of the foot called metatarsals.   However, this can occur in other bones in the foot or ankle.  Apparently, Brendan Haywood’s problem is at the ankle.   He will be treated with a walking boot for the next four weeks.   This type of problem is becoming more common in professional basketball players since they tend to be very big men and, they are also wearing lighter, less shock absorbing shoes.   The shoes do not absorb as much shock as necessary, resulting in the injury. 

If you suspect that you are having a stress problem with a bone in your foot, I recommend that you rest the foot as much as possible and apply ice to the tender area for a few minutes out of each hour.  Antiinflammatory medications such over the counter Ibuprofen or Aspirin might also be helpful.  If you try to run through this type of injury, there is a good chance you will develop a stress fracture and will be off your sport even longer.

In addition to recommending ice and rest, I use a combination of soundwaves and Laser Pain Treatment to reduce the inflammation and shorten the healing time.

If you or someone you know suffer from foot pain, please call my Toronto foot clinic at 416-486-9917 for a private consultation.  I want to help you get back to your sport as quickly as possible. 

In the photo, Brendan Haywood, while playing for Dallas, is seen trying to gently remove the face of the Lakers' Pau Gasol

After more than thirty years of treating Bunions, hammertoes, Ingrown Toenails. and Nail Fungus in Toronto, and being a Toronto Blue Jays season ticket holder for more than twenty-five  years, I was surprised as any of the fifty thousand Blue Jays fans at Rogers  Stadium last night, that local rock star Geddy Lee was given the honour instead of me.

Luckily, my young son, who will be twelve years old at his next birthday, took it in stride.

Apparently it bothered the Blue Jays a lot more, because they went on to lose the game 4-1, to the Cleveland Indians.

If any of the Toronto Blue Jays, management, or fans of the team suffer the from any of the above problems, or Heel Spur Pain, Arch Pain or Plantar Fasciitis, I hope they will call my Toronto podiatry office at 416-486-9917 for a private consultation.

And remember, if the Toronto Blue Jays do not live up to expectations this year, blame Geddy, not me.

Photograph of Geddy Lee taken by your Toronto podiatrist

Photograph of podiatrist and son taken by Mary, the lady who sits two rows in front of us.

All winter, patients have been asking me if I’d gone away at all to get away from the cold.  The answer was no.  However, I decided to go somewhere during March break. I needed to do something other than Minimally Invasive Foot Surgery for Bunions in my Toronto Ontario Podiatry Office.

I went to Buffalo. 

I attended the 20^thannual Buffalo Masters’ Basketball Tournament held March 15^th, 16^th, and 17^that the University of Buffalo, Alumni Arena. It is billed as the North American Masters’ Basketball Championships. I attended not only as a podiatry consultant, but also as an athlete.  The player’s ages ranged from thirties all the way to seventy five and beyond.  All athletes played in appropriate age categories. There were 60 teams and approximately 550 competitors

In addition to playing four games in a little bit more than twenty four hours, I also had the pleasure of watching many other games.  The Alumni Arena is quite an impressive facility. In the main building where the University of Buffalo plays their games, one game would be going on the main court and games were going on at the same time on three separate courts that surround the main court. In addition to this, there was a separate practice facility that had four more courts.  I was able to watch games involving different age groups.  The love of the game was obvious in all age groups.  The main difference was that as you went up in age groups, the game slowed down incrementally.  I was particularly amazed by the oldest athletes.  When they put on their basketball shoes and got on the courts, they became young again.

As I mentioned, I played in four games in a little over 24 hours.  Playing the games was not really the toughest part.  The hard part was the stiffness that set in between the games.  Thank goodness for anti-inflammatory medication.

Friday was free pizza and chicken wings night courtesy of Santora’s restaurant.  I didn’t eat the wings, but the pizza was quite good.

I have the privilege of playing in the Scarborough Master’s league here in Toronto. The league was pleased to send a number of players and teams to the tournament.  Our ages ranged from mid-fifties to early seventies.  I will not tell you what category I played in.

It was a lot of fun to participate and it was amazing to be surrounded by so many grown men who have not lost their child-like love for the game.  I heard somebody ask one veteran how his team did in the last game.  His answer summed it all up for me.

“We did good. The other team scored more points is all.” 

On August 10, 2012, Mark Teixeira, the New York Yankees first base man, was kind enough to visit the children at the Miles and Kelly Nadal Youth Centre at the Toronto Kiwanis Boys and Girls Club on Spruce Street in Toronto. Mark talked about the charitable work he does for inner city youth in New York and gave encouragement to the inner city Toronto kids. It was very generous of Mark, taking time out from his busy schedule on a game day as the Yankees played the Toronto Blue Jays that evening.

Mark was kind enough to take a picture with the kids and gave a signed baseball bat to the club. Fittingly, he hit a home run that evening. Unfortunately, that hit contributed to the Yankees' victory over the Blue Jays.

He was the designated hitter that night., Apparently he had a hand or wrist injury. I told him if he ever had a foot problem (such as Heel Spur Pain, Plantar Fasciitis, Bunion or  painful  Ingrown Toenails , I would be happy to help him in my Toronto foot clinic.

In the photograph below, the two good looking guys are Mark and my 11-year-old son. I am the guy on the left.