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1)Center of Podiatry Medicine, Juntendo University Hospital, Tokyo, Japan2)Division of Regenerative Therapy, Juntendo University Graduate School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan3)Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Juntendo University School of Medicine, Tokyo, JapanCorresponding author: Rica TanakaCenter of Podiatry Medicine, Juntendo University Hospital2-1-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-8421, JapanTEL: +81-3-8313-3111　FAX: +81-3-5802-1905　E-mail: rtanaka@juntendo.ac.jp47th Health Topics for Tokyoites “The Role of the First Podiatry Center in Japan”〔Held on Jun. 19, 2021〕〔Received　Oct. 8, 2021〕〔Accepted　Nov. 8, 2021〕J-STAGE Advance published date: Apr. 15, 2022Copyright © 2022 The Juntendo Medical Society. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original source is properly credited. doi: 10.14789/jmj.JMJ21-0031-OT　Podiatry Medicine is well known medical field in Europe and the United States, which is a discipline that specializes in foot medical care. In Europe and the United States, it is common to see a podiatrist if there are any symptoms in the foot and they provide specialized medical for foot disease. However, in Japan, even if you feel that your foot hurts, there is no specialized medicine to be provided. In Japan, commonly podiatry medicine is often provided by each clinical field or department related to patient’s symptoms and there was no university hospital in Japan that advocated Podiatry Medicine. As the aging society progresses in the future, maintaining “walking” is one of the important issues to extend the healthy life span. To overcome this issue and to provide specialized medical care for foot patients in Japan, Juntendo Hospital established the “Podiatry Center” to be the first time in Japan. This center comprehensively assesses the symptoms that occur in the foot, similar to podiatry medicine in Europe and the United States (medical treatment for the lower leg to the foot, not including the knee), and provides multidisciplinary treatment from foot care to cutting-edge medical treatment. The center cooperates with many clinical departments such as　plastic and reconstructive surgery, dermatology, vascular surgeon, cardiovascular medicine, diabetes medicine, collagen disease medicine, kidney medicine, orthopedics, rehabilitation department, and nurses, prosthetist, and other professions to carry out diagnosis, treatment, and prevention promptly and effectively for the best for patients with foot diseases.96Juntendo Medical Journal2022. 68(2), 96-100Health Topics for TokyoitesEstablishment of Japan’s First “Podiatry Medicine Center” in a University HospitalIntroductionPodiatry medicine is a field of medicine special-ized to study, diagnosis, and treat the disorders of the foot, ankle, and lower extremity. The medicine started in the early 20th century in the United States and now is practiced in United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada. In these countries, podia-trist is a national qualification of a physician who specializes in that practice. There are nine univer-sities that specialize in foot disease and surgery in the United States, and graduates are certified as podiatrists or foot surgeons (national qualification). Key words: podiatry, podiatry medicine, team medicine, university hospitalCurrently, in the United States, there are approxi-mately 15,000 podiatrists who diagnose, treat, and provide preventive care for all foot-related illnesses1). The main medical treatments offered by certified podiatrists and podiatric surgeons address a wide range of diseases such as foot swelling, ganglion cyst, Charcot feet, Morton’s disease, hallux valgus, shoe problems, tarsal canal syndrome, metatarso-phalangeal pain, plantar fasciitis, plantar fibromatosis, athlete’s foot, diabetic foot ulcers, and ischemic lower extremities. However, Japan does not have an education or a specialist system for podiatry. Rica TANAKA1-3)