Getting injury on your feet, heels, or ankles can be painful as it may take some time to heal. That is why taking proper treatment from the very first moment is important. Especially elderly people, they might require some extra care for proper healing. Hence, the following are some of the basic foot care tips that may prevent further injuries, fungus, or infections.
Clean and Moisturize
A routine foot cleaning session is important for hygiene. As this routine is important to stop any fungal, viral, and bacterial infections, you might need to have this session outside of the bath and shower. You can have this wipe down session with warm water, soap, and a washcloth. With cleanliness and hygiene, it might relax and calm you down. After that, moisturize to prevent open foot sores, especially for older adults whose skin is drier. Afterwards, you can cover feet with a breathable cotton sock aid for comfort and warmth.
Trim the toenails
This may prevent fungus, or bacterial infections, several foot injuries, inward nail growth, and help you maintain your overall hygiene. However, due to flexibility issues, it may be a bit of struggle to reach toes for many elderly people. In this case, taking external help can be helpful. If anything looks wrong then you can get them trimmed by a qualified podiatrist rather than at a nail salon.
Pro Tip: Trim nails no shorter than the tips of the toes.
Ensure good circulation
You can include several things in your routine for better movement of your feet. Having occasional massage sessions may improve the overall blood circulation for better mobility. During the massage, keeping your feet propped up on the couch or a footstool may reduce the likelihood of swelling. In cases of sitting for a significant period of time, wiggling the toes, moving feet around can help the blood pass through the feet and toes. Including stretching in your daily routine may also boost the blood flow.
Prevent fungal infections
Constant moisture around the feet may invite fungal infections. Hence, it is important to change socks or stocks as often as necessary. You can search online bed socks for elderly to find the suitable one for your use. To prevent the foot moisture, using a good foot powder may also help in drying that up. In the cases of constant itching or burning, schedule a meeting with a podiatrist to have it checked before some infection develops.
Buy quality footwear
Equipping yourself with quality and good fittings shoes, socks are important. With loose footwear, you may develop blisters that can worsen because of shoes sliding around your feet as you move. And wearing tight shoes can cause circulation problems. In cases of mobility issues, investing in a sock aid may come of great help. That compensates for Limited Range of Motion. Patients having arthritis experience difficulty bending and reaching their feet and a sock aid can allow them to independently put on their socks.
It is a flexible or semi-flexible material attached with two long handles. You can buy bed socks for elderly online and attach the sock on it and then place your foot inside the slope of the aid. Then you can pull it with the rope to wear your sock.
Avoid Bare Feet
For elderly people, it is preferable to wear shoes even when indoors to prevent cuts, scrapes, or some heavy object falling on the feet. Especially when using the toilet, there is always the risk of bacterial and fungal infections. Slippers would act as a protective barrier against nasty foot infections such as toenail fungus and athlete's foot.
Visit your Podiatrist Regularly
Even if your feet are perfectly fine, visiting your doctor once a year will make sure that nothing severe is developing. This can be a preventive step to prevent all kinds of early-stage foot issues. Being a little active will make sure that warts, hammertoes, bunions, bone spurs, and neuromas, never get the chance to blow up into major problems that may require serious treatment.
Source : https://yarabook.com/read-blog/52906
Comments