The feet are the foundation of the entire musculoskeletal system. How your feet function directly influences the mechanics of your ankles, knees, hips, and spine. Abnormal foot posture - particularly overpronation, supination, or leg length discrepancy - creates altered forces that travel up through the kinetic chain, contributing to or directly causing knee and hip pain.
At Deal Podiatry in Deal, Kent, our podiatrists perform detailed biomechanical assessments to identify whether your knee or hip pain has a foot-related cause, and provide targeted orthotic and rehabilitation solutions.
How Foot Function Affects the Knee
Flat feet – Excessive inward rolling of the foot causes internal rotation of the tibia, altering patellar tracking and increasing stress on the medial knee.
Patellofemoral pain syndrome (runner's knee) – Pain behind or around the kneecap, strongly linked to foot overpronation and hip muscle weakness.
Iliotibial band syndrome – Lateral knee pain common in runners, often driven by biomechanical factors including foot pronation and hip abductor weakness.
Medial knee pain – Overpronation increases valgus stress at the knee, contributing to medial compartment osteoarthritis.
Leg length discrepancy – Unequal leg lengths place asymmetrical loading through the knees, accelerating wear on one side.
How Foot Function Affects the Hip
Pelvic tilt from leg length difference – A shorter leg drops the pelvis on that side, increasing hip joint stress and contributing to hip osteoarthritis.
Trendelenburg gait – Weakness in hip abductors, often tied to altered lower limb biomechanics, causes lateral trunk sway during walking.
Greater trochanter bursitis – Inflammation of the hip bursa that can be exacerbated by gait asymmetry.
Our Assessment Approach
Full biomechanical assessment – Evaluating range of motion, muscle strength, and alignment from hip to toe.
Gait analysis – Observing walking patterns to identify compensatory movements.
Leg length assessment – Identifying structural or functional discrepancies.
Footwear review – Examining existing shoes for wear patterns indicating abnormal foot mechanics.
Treatment Options
Custom foot orthotics – Correcting foot posture reduces external rotation and valgus forces at the knee and hip.
Heel lifts – Compensating for leg length discrepancy reduces asymmetrical loading through the knees and hips.
Footwear advice – Appropriate footwear supports the orthotic and provides the cushioning needed to reduce joint impact.
Exercise rehabilitation – Hip abductor strengthening, quadriceps exercises, and flexibility work improve the muscular framework supporting the joints.
Referral – To physiotherapy, sports medicine, or orthopaedics where appropriate.
Related Treatments at Deal Podiatry
Our podiatrists at Deal Podiatry, Deal, Kent can address the foot mechanics contributing to knee and hip pain:
Book Your Assessment at Deal Podiatry
If you have chronic knee or hip pain that has not resolved with other treatment, a podiatric biomechanical assessment at Deal Podiatry in Deal, Kent may provide the answers - and the relief - you have been looking for.