: Why does Podiatry exist as a separate specialty? Are the feet really so different from the rest of the body?

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Somehow podiatry came up ( I have no background in medicine) and I was wondering why in the world are feet doctors a specialty compared to a general surgeon or someone that might fix a broken arm or hand issues?

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78 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

There are approximately 360 joints and 260 bones in the human body (I say approximately since there are lots of humans with a few more or a few less)

Of those there are 33 joints and 26 bones in each foot, for a total of 20% of the joints and bones in the human body.

Are you surprised that there is a specialist for a human structure that contains 20% of all bones and joints in the human body (along with the ligaments and muscles to support them)?

Note that there are also specialist hand-surgeons, as the hands are also extremely complex structures (where each hand contains 27 joints and 27 bones), although since the hand involves more fine motorics it has a lot more ligaments.

Anonymous 0 Comments

Think it’s more of a US thing. Other country tend to have hand or feet surgery as a sub specialty of orthopedics or plastic surgery

Anonymous 0 Comments

There are approximately 360 joints and 260 bones in the human body (I say approximately since there are lots of humans with a few more or a few less)

Of those there are 33 joints and 26 bones in each foot, for a total of 20% of the joints and bones in the human body.

Are you surprised that there is a specialist for a human structure that contains 20% of all bones and joints in the human body (along with the ligaments and muscles to support them)?

Note that there are also specialist hand-surgeons, as the hands are also extremely complex structures (where each hand contains 27 joints and 27 bones), although since the hand involves more fine motorics it has a lot more ligaments.

Anonymous 0 Comments

A lot of people have given good facts. I will amplify that diabetes affects feet a lot. Dead cells, possible amputations. Diabetes affects anywhere there are small vessels.

Anonymous 0 Comments

There are approximately 360 joints and 260 bones in the human body (I say approximately since there are lots of humans with a few more or a few less)

Of those there are 33 joints and 26 bones in each foot, for a total of 20% of the joints and bones in the human body.

Are you surprised that there is a specialist for a human structure that contains 20% of all bones and joints in the human body (along with the ligaments and muscles to support them)?

Note that there are also specialist hand-surgeons, as the hands are also extremely complex structures (where each hand contains 27 joints and 27 bones), although since the hand involves more fine motorics it has a lot more ligaments.

Anonymous 0 Comments

A lot of people have given good facts. I will amplify that diabetes affects feet a lot. Dead cells, possible amputations. Diabetes affects anywhere there are small vessels.

Anonymous 0 Comments

A lot of people have given good facts. I will amplify that diabetes affects feet a lot. Dead cells, possible amputations. Diabetes affects anywhere there are small vessels.

Anonymous 0 Comments

Trust me, you want an expert to do ingrown toenail. Regular surgeon “gave it a shot” on me and it was a far easier, fast and safer experience when I did the second toenail with a poddy. It even looked nicer as it healed up. The caricature and structure of the foot absolutely demands a specialist who does only foot stuff all day every day and is a master of the foot.

Anonymous 0 Comments

Trust me, you want an expert to do ingrown toenail. Regular surgeon “gave it a shot” on me and it was a far easier, fast and safer experience when I did the second toenail with a poddy. It even looked nicer as it healed up. The caricature and structure of the foot absolutely demands a specialist who does only foot stuff all day every day and is a master of the foot.

Anonymous 0 Comments

Trust me, you want an expert to do ingrown toenail. Regular surgeon “gave it a shot” on me and it was a far easier, fast and safer experience when I did the second toenail with a poddy. It even looked nicer as it healed up. The caricature and structure of the foot absolutely demands a specialist who does only foot stuff all day every day and is a master of the foot.