During your first appointment, you will meet Dr. Tanwir and discuss your habits and history of foot and ankle pain. Because your feet can manifest symptoms related to other conditions, stressors or chronic habits, she will ask questions about your lifestyle and other health concerns. She will then make recommendations as to a treatment plan, schedule followup appointments or request imaging as needed, and answer any questions you have about your condition.

You typically do not need a referral to see a podiatrist. That said, you should always check with your insurance to get details on your coverage. Our office can also help you get more information on your benefits and likely treatment costs. If you have any specific insurance questions before scheduling your first appointment, just get in touch.

There are a few things you can bring to help make the appointment as thorough and effective as possible, including:

• A list of concerns you’d like to discuss
• A list of your medications and pertinent notes about your medical history (surgeries, injuries, major illnesses, underlying conditions)
• Your everyday shoes – the ones that you wear the most often while on your feet
• You should also remove any nail polish so that the nails are visible.

We look forward to meeting you!

This is dependent on your specific condition and the manner of treatment. If you need immediate intervention like a cortisone shot, Dr. Tanwir may administer that at your first appointment. If you would benefit from a physical therapy regimen, you’ll need to get scheduled with a recommended provider. If you need a more involved procedure like surgery, that will be scheduled. Dr. Tanwir will discuss an expected timeline with you regardless of your treatment plan.

Many treatment plans involve long-term changes to daily habits, footware and ongoing monitoring, so it’s likely that this visit will be the start of prescribed steps you’ll take at home.

This answer varies widely depending on your condition. Dr. Tanwir will discuss your ideal treatment regimen based on your case and provide an ideal appointment schedule.

We accept a wide range of insurance plans – you can leave more about plans we are contracted with, or give us a call at (630) 861-0156 to review your specific coverage. Before seeing a new provider, we recommend that you check with your insurance to ensure coverage and get information on estimated costs.

Coverage is dependent on your insurance plan, and can vary widely. That said, you can typically expect your exam to be covered by insurance if you have podiatry benefits. Other coverage notes to consider:

• Coverage can be limited to whether the procedure is medically necessary (related to an injury or chronic issue impacting your daily function), vs. cosmetic or merely uncomfortable.
• Insurance providers may set annual limits on the number of covered podiatry appointments – verify this if you need to see Dr. Tanwir regularly.
• Common conditions and services covered by insurance include:
  • Medically necessary care, when a podiatric issue is impacting daily life
  • Medically necessary surgeries, for conditions like bunions, hammertoe, and fractures.
  • Diabetic foot care
  • Injuries
  • Preventative exams for high risk patients (like those with diabetes, to prevent ulcers)

Some services that tend to lack insurance coverage include:

• Toenail trimming, unless it is related to diabetic care or another underlying condition
• Cosmetic treatments like fungus removal or cosmetic surgeries
• Custom orthotics and inserts

If you are concerned about coverage for your recommended treatment plan, speak with our staff to get more information and explore options.

Your feet are unique, and the ideal shoes for you may not be the best for others in your life. Common considerations when choosing a shoe should include arch support, cushioning, stability, versatility, and shock absorption.

There are different recommendations for exercise, everyday walking, long hours on your feet (if you are a nurse, teacher or work retail), and specific conditions. Dr. Tanwir loves to share shoe recommendations personalized to your needs, ask about shoes at your next appointment!

Dr. Tanwir will provide specific instructions as to activities you can continue as normal, and activities you should avoid. It may be necessary to rest your feet and ankles more than usual, wait to resume your standard exercise regimen, or find alternate ways to work out while the affected area heals.

Because custom orthotics are more of an investment than over the counter insoles, many patients wonder whether they’re necessary. The bottom line? Custom orthotics are crafted to support your unique needs, while over the counter insoles are manufactured to suit the broader public. Customs will always provide more support, and we consider them well worth the investment.

Our goal is to provide education, therapy and home techniques that will allow you to prevent the return of your initial pain, but it can unfortunately return due to reinjury, aging and changes in activity. Dr. Tanwir will provide long-term recommendations as to home care and approaches to keep your feet and ankles strong and pain-free.

You shouldn’t have to live, work and exercise in pain. We work to alleviate foot and ankle discomfort by identifying the true cause and providing immediate treatment and long-term therapies to heal the area and help you move forward. Whether the issue is a joint, bone, tendon, ligament, muscle, or other component in the complex foot or ankle, we will help you pursue comfort and function.

We do. Don’t feel anxious to present a foot concern to our team – our passion is reducing discomfort and helping you feel confident and strong. Bunions and ingrown toenails can be incredibly painful and debilitating, and you deserve to be able to take a step forward.

Toenail fungus is one of our specialties. We offer nail restoration with KeryFlex to remodel nails affected by fungus. This provides an immediate cosmetic improvement, with natural-looking toenails. That way, Dr. Tanwir can treat the underlying fungus while keeping your toes looking their best.

Yes. Foot and ankle care is crucial for all patients, but especially for diabetics. If you are experiencing neuropathy and poor circulation, this increases your risk of foot and ankle ulcers and infections. Diabetes can also impact foot structures, causing hammertoes, bunions or Charcot foot (neuropathic arthropathy). If you are diabetic, reach out to establish a preventative regimen.