Dr. Abbie Clinics

Foot Mobilisation

Hands-on work addressing restrictions across the foot’s 26 bones.

  • Hands-on
  • No equipment needed
  • Course length set at assessment
  • Assessment first, always

Trusted by patients from Sydney to Narrabri

Podiatry NSW/ACT American Academy of Podiatric Sports Medicine (AAPSM) Sports Medicine Australia AHPRA — Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency
What it is

Foot Mobilisationexplained

There are 26 bones in the foot and each joint between them has a range it should move through. Mobilisation is hands-on work to restore movement where a joint has become restricted.

People whose assessment shows a joint is not moving as it should, and that the restriction is changing how load passes through the foot.

A podiatrist mobilising a patient’s foot by hand
In detail

Understandingfoot mobilisation

The foot has 26 bones and two sesamoids. Joints can become stiff or partly dislocated (subluxed), which limits how well the foot moves.

A practitioner mobilising the joints of a foot

A common example

Cuboid syndrome: a bone on the outer side of the foot partly dislocates, often after an ankle sprain or with a foot that rolls in too far.

What mobilisation aims to do

  • Increase how far the joint moves
  • Reduce joint swelling
  • Restore normal muscle tone
  • Stretch tight tissue and break down adhesions

Foot, ankle, knee and hip

Mobilisation works through the foot, ankle, knee and hip joints. It is best used alongside orthotics and exercises.

When it is not used

Past fractures or stress fractures, a history of blood clots (DVT), fresh sprains and inflammation, severe osteoporosis or infection. Your podiatrist checks these first.

How it works here

Assessment first,then treatment

Foot Mobilisation is prescribed against a diagnosis, never against a symptom. That is what the Najjarine Biomechanical Assessment is for.

Dr Abbie Najjarine assessing a patient’s gait on a treadmill
01

Assess

The assessment establishes which joints are restricted and whether that restriction is relevant to your pain.

02

Treat

The joint is mobilised by hand, working through its range rather than forcing it.

03

Address the cause

Mobilisation is usually paired with exercises or orthotic therapy so the range gained is kept.

Dr Abbie Najjarine demonstrating a lower limb assessment, with alignment marked on the leg and practitioners observing
Start here

Book an assessment

Find out whether foot mobilisation is the right call for your pain.

Questions

Foot Mobilisationquestions

No. Massage works on soft tissue. Mobilisation works on the joints themselves and is directed at specific restrictions the assessment found.

It should not. The joint is worked through its range rather than forced. Tell your podiatrist if anything is uncomfortable.

That depends on what the assessment found and how long the restriction has been there. Your podiatrist will tell you before you commit.

Usually. Range gained in the clinic is easier to keep if it is loaded between appointments.

No. You can book directly. If you are on a Medicare care plan your GP will refer you, and we can bill that.

Patient feedback

What patients sayabout foot mobilisation

Google 4.9 Based on 286 Google reviews across our clinics
Greg N. Dr. Abbie Clinics · 2 weeks ago Google

Hands-on and no equipment. My midfoot had not moved properly in years and I could feel the difference walking out.

Wendy F. Dr. Abbie Clinics · 1 month ago Google

Gentle. Nothing was forced and it did not hurt.

Omar D. Dr. Abbie Clinics · 2 months ago Google

Given exercises to keep the range. Explained why that mattered rather than just handing me a sheet.

Treating lower limb pain since 1990

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