Foot mechanics are easy to overlook. They’re at the bottom of the chain. But that’s exactly why they matter. Every step you take loads upward through the ankle, knee, hip, and spine. When the foundation is off, everything above it compensates.
Glendale Chiropractic fits custom orthotics through Foot Levelers, one of the leading orthotic labs in the country. Digital scan, direct transmission to the lab, custom fabrication, back in your hands within about a week. Two options depending on your budget: custom-fabricated Foot Levelers devices, or a quality over-the-counter insert. Either way, the clinical protocol around the fitting is the same.
Call 720-889-1659 to schedule a fitting consultation. Or read on for the full picture.
A shelf insert adds some cushion. Maybe a bit of arch support. That’s about it.
A custom orthotic is built from a digital scan of your specific foot geometry. It supports all three arches of the foot, not just the medial arch that most people think about. The lateral arch and the metatarsal arch matter too. When all three are supported correctly, the mechanics of every step change.
According to the American Podiatric Medical Association (APMA), custom orthotics are medical devices designed to align the foot and ankle into the most anatomically efficient position. That’s a different goal than cushioning. Alignment affects load distribution through the entire lower extremity.
For patients with leg length discrepancy, a custom device is the foundation of a more involved protocol. The scan and fabrication come first, and the clinical assessment builds from there. More on that below.
Most of the foot and lower extremity complaints that walk through the door have a mechanical component. Orthotics address that component directly.
The plantar fascia runs along the bottom of the foot from heel to toes. Chronic overload, flat arches, and poor footwear mechanics create microtears and inflammation where the fascia attaches to the heel. First steps in the morning are the tell. Sharp, stabbing heel pain that eases after a few minutes of walking.
Custom orthotics redistribute the load away from the attachment point. Combined with chiropractic care and soft tissue work, most plantar fasciitis cases respond well.
Flat feet and overpronation are related but not identical. Flat feet means the medial arch has collapsed. Overpronation means the foot rolls inward excessively during the gait cycle. Both create downstream problems: medial knee stress, hip rotation, lumbar loading.
Custom orthotics built from a scan of your foot support the arch in the position it needs to be in, not a generic approximation of what a foot looks like.
The Achilles tendon takes enormous load with every step. Overpronation increases that load and creates uneven stress on the tendon. Left alone, Achilles tendonitis becomes a stubborn problem. Orthotics correct the mechanics contributing to the overload.
Acute and chronic calf strains often have a mechanical origin. Same with shin splints. The muscles of the lower leg are working harder than they should to compensate for poor foot mechanics. Correcting the foundation reduces the strain on the soft tissue above it.
For patients where these complaints overlap with athletic activity, the sports injury page covers that side of care.
Chronic ankle instability, lateral ankle pain, and post-sprain mechanics all benefit from orthotic support. The orthotic provides a stable platform that reduces the compensatory loading patterns that develop after ankle injuries.
Bunions don’t reverse with orthotics. That’s worth saying upfront. What orthotics do is reduce the mechanical forces driving the progressive deformity. Correcting pronation and redistributing pressure away from the first metatarsophalangeal joint slows the progression. For patients not yet at the surgical conversation, that matters.
Unequal leg lengths are more common than most people realize, and more consequential. Even a few millimeters of difference creates asymmetrical loading through the pelvis and spine over thousands of steps per day. This is one of the more involved cases we handle. The full protocol is described in its own section below.
The foot is the foundation. What happens there travels upward.
Overpronation collapses the medial arch and rotates the tibia inward. That inward rotation loads the medial compartment of the knee. The knee adapts. The hip rotates to compensate. The pelvis tilts. The lumbar spine absorbs the asymmetry.
None of those structures were designed to operate in that position indefinitely. Over time, they break down.
Orthotics are a foundational component of care for knee pain, hip pain, and back pain, not the sole treatment, but often the piece that makes other treatment stick. Correcting the mechanics at the base changes what’s being asked of everything above it.
Foot mechanics also play a direct role in posture. Flat arches and leg length discrepancy both affect spinal alignment from the ground up. If posture correction is the primary concern, that page covers the full picture.
This is the most involved orthotic case we handle. Worth walking through the full process.
Step one: digital scan of the bare feet. Custom Foot Levelers orthotics are fabricated from that scan and delivered within about a week.
Step two: once the orthotics are in hand, a referral goes to a local imaging center for weight-bearing X-rays taken while the patient is standing in the orthotics. That imaging gives a true picture of functional leg length difference under load.
Step three: Dr. Brockway measures the femoral head height difference on the X-ray. The femoral heads should be level. When one is lower, that’s the short side.
Step four: a lift is placed under the orthotic on the short side. The patient is reassessed. If the lift brings the femoral heads into acceptable tolerance, that’s the final configuration.
Step five: if the discrepancy is large enough that a lift under the orthotic doesn’t fully account for it, Dr. Brockway co-manages with an orthotist to modify the footwear itself. Shoe modification is the next level of correction when the lift alone isn’t enough.
It’s a more involved process than a standard fitting. It’s also the only way to actually address what’s driving the asymmetrical loading.
Foot Levelers is one of the most established orthotic labs in the country, based in Roanoke, Virginia. Their devices support all three arches of the foot and are fabricated to the specific geometry of each patient’s scan.
The process at Glendale:
Every pair of Foot Levelers orthotics comes with a 365-day unconditional money-back guarantee. In 16 years of fitting patients, Dr. Brockway has had three returns. The devices hold up and patients wear them.
Custom Foot Levelers orthotics are the preferred option. They’re built from your scan, support all three arches, and form the foundation of the leg length protocol when that’s relevant.
For patients where custom isn’t in the budget right now, a quality over-the-counter insert is a reasonable alternative. Both options are available through this office.
Here’s what matters: ordering through Glendale Chiropractic means the clinical protocol is the same either way. That includes the X-ray referral with your orthotics in place, the femoral head height assessment, lift placement on the short side if indicated, and co-management with an orthotist if the discrepancy warrants shoe modification.
The device is different. The care around it isn’t.
Going directly to a manufacturer saves a small amount upfront. It skips the clinical layer entirely. For straightforward cases, that may be fine. For anyone with leg length discrepancy, knee, hip, or back involvement, the assessment is the part that makes the orthotics work correctly.
| RED FLAG: When Orthotics Fitting Is Not the First Step Orthotics are not appropriate as a first intervention in every case. Dr. Brockway refers out or co-manages when any of the following are present: – Suspected stress fracture or acute ankle/foot fracture – Severe structural foot deformity requiring surgical evaluation – Advanced diabetic peripheral neuropathy with significant loss of foot sensation – Active infection or open wound on the foot Imaging comes first when mechanism of injury or examination findings raise any question about bony involvement. Referrals are made to the appropriate specialist when the case is outside the scope of orthotics fitting. |
The fitting consultation starts with a history of the foot complaint and any relevant knee, hip, or back symptoms. Dr. Brockway assesses gait, arch structure, and lower extremity alignment before the scan.
The digital scan itself takes seconds. No foam boxes, no plaster. You stand on the scanner and the data transmits immediately.
If leg length discrepancy is suspected, the scan and orthotics fabrication happen first. The imaging referral follows once the devices are in hand.
Timeline: orthotics typically arrive within 7 days of the scan. A follow-up visit is scheduled to confirm fit, assess function, and address any modifications.
Hours are Monday through Thursday, 9:00 to 12:30 and 2:30 to 6:00.
A lot of orthotics fitting stops at the device. Scan, fabricate, hand over, done.
The clinical protocol here goes further. Leg length assessment. X-ray referral with orthotics in place. Femoral head measurement. Lift placement. Orthotist co-management when the case calls for it. The fitting is integrated into the broader picture of what’s happening from the ground up.
For patients managing peripheral neuropathy alongside foot complaints, that layer of care matters even more. Neuropathy affects foot sensation and mechanics in ways that change how orthotics fitting needs to be approached.
Glendale Chiropractic is at 425 S. Cherry St., Suite 307, Denver, CO 80246. 145 five-star reviews. Serving Glendale and surrounding Denver neighborhoods.
Foot mechanics are worth getting right. The downstream effects on the knee, hip, and spine are real, and they accumulate over time.
Call 720-889-1659 to schedule. Monday through Thursday, 9:00 to 12:30 and 2:30 to 6:00.
Glendale Chiropractic. 425 S. Cherry St., Suite 307, Denver, CO 80246.
