Essentially they provided basic foot care. There are no chiropodists still practicing in America though the profession still exists in Great Britain, Australia, and other countries. A podiatrist is a physician licensed to diagnose and treat, both medically and surgically, any foot disorder. One, two, and three year hospital residencies are available to podiatry school graduates. An orthopedic surgeon is a specialist dealing with any bone deformity of the body.
Orthopedists first earn their medical degree in a traditional medical school.
They then complete an internship and residency in orthopedic surgery. Some orthopedists specialize in deformities of the feet. Both podiatrists and orthopedic surgeons perform foot surgery. I saw an ad by a foot surgeon for microsurgery. A. Microsurgery is a precise technique of operating under a microscope in which a surgeon can reattach tiny structures such as small blood vessels and veins.