What About High Arches?

Many of the people we see for foot and ankle pain have arches that are flatter than normal. Some foot conditions come from having very flat feet. The foot type that doesn’t get much attention is the one with a high arch. For clarification, the position your arch assumes when standing is the arch shape we are referring to. Almost everyone has a high arch when sitting. If there is a nice dome to your arch when standing, you have a high arch.

Since high arches usually come with a heavier stride, the term “Chandelier Shaker” has been affectionately used. High arches come with less foot problems than low ones, however having high arches does not make a patient immune from having issues.

Some of the problems we see from high arches are:

1. Pain on the balls of the feet.

2. Tendinitis on the outside of the ankle.

3. Back pain.

4. Heel pain.

5. Pressure on the outside of the foot.

6. Ankle Instability on the outside. (Prone to ankle sprains)

We have seen all of these conditions many times. Wearing shoes that have adequate cushion and good arches is best for high arched feet. If a person with high arches loses some of the cushion on the heels and balls of the feet, as some do, barefoot walking on a hard surface is painful.

High arched feet is one of the foot types we’ve successfully made custom orthotics for. Cushioned shoes with good arches aren’t always enough to solve some of the problems listed above. Knowing a person’s arch type is important to finding the ultimate solution to pain in the feet, knees and back. We are here to serve you if high arches are causing something to hurt.