Arizona Brace and other ankle supports

Can anyone tell me about the Arizona Brace? And any possible
alternatives?
After 30 years of living with rheumatoid arthritis my feet are badly
deformed. I've worn custom-made shoes for the past 12 years, mainly
to accommodate problems with my toes and metatarsals. Lately my ankle
has been hurting and it feels like my foot pronates. I kept taking my
most recent custom shoes back to have them improve the support of the
ankles. I finally went to a new podiatrist, hoping for an
explanation of what was wrong with my old shoes and hoping for the
name of a different shoemaker to make me a new pair of shoes.
Instead, the new podiatrist said my current shoes are fine. He said I
need the additional support of an Arizona Brace. I didn't expect
that. Because it's a new podiatrist, I don't know how much to trust
him.
If anyone has been wearing an Arizona Brace, I would love to hear
about your experiences. Are you happy with it? How much does it
help?
I have one specific question.
They look like they will be hot and I have trouble with hot shoes. Was
that a problem for you and how did you deal with it With my current
shoes I had to remove the tongue and punch holes in the sides of the
shoes. I'm concerned that I'll spend all that money and not be able
to wear them.
All comments will really be appreciated.
Ellen

Oh, I wish Walt was posting. He knows all about inflam.arthritis and foot
problems and has had several procedures done on his feet and ankles.
What do you take for your RA, Ellen?

Harv

"elleninda" <elleninda2000@yahoo.com> wrote in message
news:1177633891.996658.5010@r35g2000prh.googlegrou ps.com...
> Can anyone tell me about the Arizona Brace? And any possible
> alternatives?
> After 30 years of living with rheumatoid arthritis my feet are badly
> deformed. I've worn custom-made shoes for the past 12 years, mainly
> to accommodate problems with my toes and metatarsals. Lately my ankle
> has been hurting and it feels like my foot pronates. I kept taking my
> most recent custom shoes back to have them improve the support of the
> ankles. I finally went to a new podiatrist, hoping for an
> explanation of what was wrong with my old shoes and hoping for the
> name of a different shoemaker to make me a new pair of shoes.
> Instead, the new podiatrist said my current shoes are fine. He said I
> need the additional support of an Arizona Brace. I didn't expect
> that. Because it's a new podiatrist, I don't know how much to trust
> him.
> If anyone has been wearing an Arizona Brace, I would love to hear
> about your experiences. Are you happy with it? How much does it
> help?
> I have one specific question.
> They look like they will be hot and I have trouble with hot shoes. Was
> that a problem for you and how did you deal with it With my current
> shoes I had to remove the tongue and punch holes in the sides of the
> shoes. I'm concerned that I'll spend all that money and not be able
> to wear them.
> All comments will really be appreciated.
> Ellen
>

Hi Ellen,
I wear a lace-up arizona brace on my left foot and ankle. My left foot
and ankle are severely deformed. as my podiatrist said, nearly all the
joints in both foot and ankle have fused on their own, but in the
"wrong" position. walking is very painful (i have RA by the way). at
first, i wasn't sure if the brace was helping and i stopped wearing
it. when my pain increased and i was afraid my foot would change so
much that the brace would no longer fit, i decided i'd better start
wearing it. it helps a lot. i still have pain, but i can walk much
better with the brace. a concern i have is that i walk worse then ever
now when i don't wear the brace and i don't know if i've lost muscle
from using the brace or if the arthritis is just getting worse. i wear
the brace with brooks tennis shoes (which i've found cheaper on ebay
than in the stores). i also am getting some hip pain and don't know if
it might be from wearing the brace or simply from my lousy gait.

after i got the brace, i had to go back for a couple of adjustments to
it. i lace it "funny" to avoid pressure on my. . . some bone, i don't
remember what it's called. as to the heat issue, be sure to tell the
fitter about it in case they can address it in some way. i'm afraid
you may just have to cope with it. i have a problem with heat, hot
flashes and lots of perspiration in hot weather, yet i'm able to wear
the brace, shoe AND support hose at the same time. maybe that's why i
have a problem with heat? lol.
anyhow, i recommend you give it a whirl, especially if your insurance
will pay for it, since it's expensive.

diane

For my first 10 years of living with RA, I took whatever my
rheumatologist prescribed. It wasn't just that nothing helped; I
really struggled with the allergic reactions and side effects. So I
don't take any medicines. My current medical regime consists of a
custom-made very healthy diet and lots of exercise and spirituality.
Trying to figure out what to do about my foot and ankle problems, I
recently went to see a respected rheumatologist. I told him I don't
take medicine anymore. At first he looked surprised, but then he
said, "at this point there probably isn't anything that would help
anyway". As I said, I've been living with this for 30 years.
Thank you for asking.
Ellen