Howard M Sokoloff, DPM

First surgery Unilocal comments: 5 stars *****
I wanted to thank Dr. Sokoloff for an amazing experience. I was super terrified to have bunion surgery and if not for his wonderful confident and friendly demeanor I would have never been brave enough to go through with it. Everything turned out like Dr. Sokoloff said it would. I walked out right after surgery with no pain and by day 20 I kid you not I am in a regular shoe. He is an expert in podiatry. I would recommend him to anyone needing bunion surgery in a heart beat. His staff is also the nicest group of people you will ever meet at a doctors. A+++++.
Thank you Dr. Sokoloff for everything!
Ps. Surgery center in San Ramon is amazing too:) so caring and they followed up with a recovery card a week later.
Mara
Second foot surgery ***** 5 stars
Today Feb 4^th I had my 2^nd surgery with Dr Sokolff and the experience was just as fantastic as the first. He is a magician. His personality makes you feel comfortable and he is smart! Thanks again Dr Sokoloff!
Mara

Talk about great, if you have a problem with your foot this is the place to go. I called and they got me in the same day, evaluated my foot problem, gave me stretching and icing instructions and a cortisone shot after my second visit I was walking normal again (I normally walk 4 — 6 miles a day and couldn’t because of my problem). So kudos to Dr. Sokoloff and his great and caring staff!

He is one of the best Podiatric surgeons in the Bay Area. Not only has he performed surgery on me personally, he had saved my father from an amputation that all the orthopedic surgeons were insisting was the one option. Sometimes having to wait is a sign that he takes his time with patients. Many patients often may come in for one thing, yet discuss multiple issues. Having known him over 30 years, I would not trust anyone else to treat me, or anyone in my family. As a nurse, I know what an excellent podiatric surgeon he is.

I am very thankful to Dr. Sokoloff and his whole entire office. For 20 years I have lived with a painful foot condition called bunions. Dr. Sokoloff did successful corrections to my feet, the treatment I got was A+, the staff couldn’t be any nicer. This Doctor and his staff are 1^st rate, I don’t normally take the time to write reviews. But the exceptional treatment I received from Dr. Sokoloff has me literally dancing on my feet. This Doctor and his staff have been committed towards my care, and I’m sure you will receive that same level of commitment. and care. I really had no worries and felt like I was in good hands with Dr. Sokoloff and his team. Thank you all for giving me a pain free life.
sincerely
Douglass R.

How many podiatrists does one have to see in order to get decent treatment? Apparently three’s charm. Dr. Sokoloff is NOT the third doctor who I saw though. He was the second.
Dr. Sokoloff treated me for a neuroma that was lingering on for years. Treatment included cortisone shots that ceased to work after a while. It wasn’t clear to him if the neuroma was between the 3^rd and 4^th toe or the 2^nd and 3^rd toe. The symptoms pointed to 2^nd and 3^rd. But 3^rd and 4^th is much more common and he was suspicious that my neuroma was in the most common location.
Either way, he operated. Evidently, there were TWO neuromas. This is what’s in the surgical report anyway. He treated both of them and surgically removed or snipped them both. This is where the problem lies.
According to my new podiatrist, it’s not wise to remove/​snip both neuromas and it is especially troublesome to remove both during the same surgery. Apparently, Dr. Sokoloff didn’t realize this. My new doctor said that in order to snip the nerves, Dr. Sokoloff had to cut through the ligaments which run between both sets of toes. This can backfire and cause the 3^rd metatarsal bone to collapse or fall so that it sort of protrudes into the ball of the foot, causing much pain. And this is what happened to me.
My new podiatrist tells me this problem is so common that she warns patients before removing 2 neuromas at the same time. She makes them sign a consent form if they insist on having both neuromas removed.
It became apparent to me that this protrusion in the ball of my foot was a result of the neuroma surgery. Dr. Sokoloff never admitted he caused this problem. However, he did try to treat it with many electrotherapy sessions followed by laser therapy. He never charged me for any of these sessions, nor did he charge me for repeated office visits for the problem. So this tells me he knows he caused the problem.
But alas, the problem persists. For now, my new podiatrist is adjusting my orthotics so that pressure is relieved from the ball of my foot. I hope this helps. Either way, I’m stuck with a worse problem than when I went to see Dr. Sokoloff in the first place. This is enough to earn him a one star review. Perhaps if I was in slightly better condition than when I went to see him in the first place, I wouldn’t be so upset.
I don’t want to say that Dr. Sokoloff shoots from the hip. That would be too presumptive. But I do feel he was way too confident about the situation and didn’t think it through.
I agree with other reviewers that Dr. Sokoloff shuffles between too many patients at once. He keeps you waiting for up to 45 minutes or more, just in the waiting room. He seems nice on the surface but I don’t trust him anymore and I feel he’s phony because he didn’t come clean. The petite brunette nurse is very, very nice. The tall nurse with white/​grey hair is not. She doesn’t seem sincere in helping patients. The front desk clerk seems rather robotic and phony. Really, I don’t care about that. I just wish I didn’t have this horrible problem caused by Dr. Sokoloff.

I was referred to Dr. Sokoloff by a friend. I never felt more comfortable with a doctor as I did with Dr. Sokoloff, he made me feel as if we’ve been friends for a long time — he has a great «bed-​side» manner. His staff was pleasant, professional and friendly. Any question I had his staff was knowledgeable about all things asked. Dr. S spent the time necessary to explain my procedure, recovery time, etc. They called the following day to see how I was doing and to see if I had any questions. My wait time was minimal while in his office. I will not recommend anyone unless I’m extremely happy; if I could give Dr. S and his staff 10 stars I would.

I’ve had 4 major surgeries in my lifetime, each requiring General Anesthesia, and prior to each of them I did extensive research on the Physicians and the procedure being such a pessimist and a worry rat. I carefully read each and every review, asked a million questions and made sure I understood every step in the procedure, the healing and the recovery process. That said, I chose Dr. Sokoloff and his team to remove a bone spur in my heel (Haglunds Deformity/​Bursitis) that was causing me great pain due to the spur protruding into the Achilles tendon. This is not a quick or easy procedure, the Achilles tendon is completely detached, and the recovery is ~8 weeks, so you might understand my great concern being a young father of 3. 5 weeks later, I’m writing this review because I’ve been so impressed with Dr. Sokoloff’s knowledge, professionalism, care, friendliness, as well as his incredible staff. Dr. Sokoloff’s reputation and thriving business in the Bay Area is a direct result of these mutual feelings. As another review stated, Dr. Sokoloff may not spend 20 minutes with each patient for the pre/​post opp but you should feel confident that he is very well educated and experienced in his field and knows what he’s doing. Plus, his assistant Pam is very responsive by phone and can/​will answer any question you may have after your appointments. I highly recommend Dr. Sokoloff and his team for all your podiatry needs.

Is their solution to everything a cortisone shot?
The staff is nice enough, but Dr S did not spend more than 2 mins with me at each appt. Did not ask about my physical activities, he asked nothing!
Pressed my foot, & a Dx was born.
Dx plantar fascittis, Rx cortisone shot twice (only accepted at the first appt & swore never again!) Couldn’t walk for almost a week!
I’d say do your research & keep looking. Don’t let the good reviews fool you on this one.

I would recommend Dr. Walker and Dr. Sokoloff. Both are very personable and professional. My daughter saw Dr. Sokoloff today for an ingrown nail that was infected. She was more nervous about getting the shots to numb the area than the actual procedure to remove the ingrown nail. She had the procedure before so she knew that that part doesn’t hurt. In her words the procedure was quick, easy, and relatively painless. To help things along he was engaging and put her at ease before doing the procedure.

My daughter had a planta wart on her foot. Dr Sokoloff was great. She was nervous about having it treated. Dr. Sokoloff cracked a joke or 2 and before she knew it, it was over. Great bedside manner.

its been 6 years plus since my surgery… cant believe I waited so long in pain year after year before I had bunion surgery. The only reason I didnt was I had heard it was a terrrible surgery and never had good results… I know it was because of Dr, Soloffs expertise that I am wearing sandals, high heels and still look good in them all with no major scars. I just woke up this sunny day and was putting on sandals and just wanted to thank him again soooooooooooooo much for the amazing work he did. I had the worst bunion that I was at a point the bone was sticking out so far I was unable to wear shoes… thanks you again so much Dr. Sokoloff… plus he is a great guy, great sense of humor and one of the nicest doctors ever.

Dr. Sokoloff and his Staff are awesome! After many, many years of suffering from an arthritic bunion, I finally decided to do something about it. From the minute I decided to go forward with the surgery, Dr. Sokoloff made it so comfortable for me.
He was thorough in his explanation of the procedure and never once did I have any hesitation after meeting with him the first time.
The out-​patient surgery was a breeze, and except for some typical dis-​comfort for a few days to a week afterwards, everything went accordingly and there were no surprises!
I was back at work a week later, walking comfortably in my «boot» for a few weeks and then back in comfortable shoes after the stitches were removed. This week (6 weeks later), I was able to go to the gym and walk a few miles on the tread mill.
Dr. Sokoloff is an excellent surgeon ! He is forthright and honest … and I am so happy that I decided to entrust my foot in his care. LOVE Pam and his staff as well!
Thank you Doc!

Dr Sokoloff is a terrific doctor. His support staff is knowledgable, friendly and service –oriented. Dr Sokoloff puts his patients first. I have personally seen him on several occasions. However, most importantly, he helped treat my toddler’s over pronation problem perfectly! It is incredibly difficult to find a doctor who can treat adults AND children.
He is an expert in his field. He is in high demand. And is worth any amount of waiting that you may find in his office. He is absolutely wonderful!

PLEASE DO NOT GO TO THIS OFFICE!!. I have had the worst experience of my life here. Dr. Walker gave me a shot in my foot that has disabled me for up to a year. I have major nerve damage in my foot due to her shot. Dr. Sokolove mis-​diagnosed me and sent me to a friend of his who wanted to do a shot in my spine for pain for a disorder that I did not even have. I was yelled at by the office staff for taking a phone call in the lobby while I was on the phone with one of my clients, (not only embarrassing, but could have cost me money) when there was not one other person in the lobby and I could not walk out to take this important call. I was even so quiet about it they did not even know I was on the phone until they looked at me. I got two other opinions from specialists and both said I should have never had the cortisone shot which has now disabled me from this office. I went thru major stress and emotional turmoil over the diagnosis that I was given that I could potentially lose my ability to walk and needed to have a shot in my spine to treat. The two other specialist I saw said this diagnosis was way off. I was told by this office, that I could continue to work, which meant standing and walking all day, because it would not make my pain worse. Again, the other two specialist who correctly diagnosed me, said the more I stayed off of the foot, the quicker I would feel some relief, and following their advice, I have started to find gradual relief from the pain. The final straw was that I stressed to this office that I wanted to know up front any costs. They said that the expenses would be covered by insurance and proceeded to put a walking cast on me and did the cortisone shot and an anesthetic shot. I now received a bill from this office for $ 400.00. I now get to pay $ 400.00 to an office that has disabled me. I cannot walk 50 feet without pain, due to a shot they gave me that I never should have had in the first place. Needless to say, I am putting together a malpractice case against this completely incompetent office. THIS OFFICE WILL JUST CHARGE YOU BLIND AND DISABLE YOU IN THE PROCESS. Did I mention that I can no longer participate in the things I love anymore like skiing, golf, dancing, and running due to their incompetence.

For months, Dr Sokoloff insisted that the strange array of foot, arch, and calf pains of moderate intensity, which kept me out of work for 2 months was plantar fasciitis, and PF surgical release was his recommended tx.
2^nd opinions, 2 orthopedic Md’s …1 ½ years later.
Fractured accessory navicular causing PTTD «- torn
Torn peroneal brevis, And subluxed peroneal Longous tendon.
TX HUGE surgery –FDL tendon transfer –and 2 tendons repaired – NOW 4 days post-​op? Off work 4 – 6 months!
Felt Dr S. could only see and treat For PF. Wasted vital time in his grossly overbooked office. The wait times are terrible. Be prepared to wait a good hour.
was able to dx swiftly.

I have been seeing Dr. Sokoloff for several years. As a runner I have lots of foot issues. He treated me for a neuroma with a cortisone shot and orthotics and I was able to still run (yay!). He also treated my husband’s ankle spain last year and got him walking quickly.
Fast forward to Sept 1^st when I was doing a 10 miler and about mile 3, my shoelaces felt too tight, to make a very long story short, I broke my foot. I waited a day and a half before going to John Muir to get an xray and it was broken. Due to Labor Day weekend and the Monday holiday, I had to wait til Tuesday to see the Doctor. He took xrays (and as another reviewer said, he always takes his own in his office, so easy, don’t bother to get them prior to seeing him) and said I needed surgery because the break was so bad. Two days later, on Thursday he operated. Surgery went well, he put a plate and pins in to fix the break. I had no pain, and still have no pain. I was prepared to be physically hurting, and that hasn’t been the case. So far so good.
His nurse Pam is so wonderful. She is helpful, available, I can call anytime, get my bandages changed anytime, really quite amazing in this age of low customer service.
He has a new office in a new building accross from Crow Canyon Golf Course. The new office is more spacious and comfortable which is nice since it is a busy office.
I would rate Dr. Sokoloff a 4.5−5 except the office waits can be ridiculous. I don’t think that is Dr. Sokoloff or Pam’s issue as they are very efficient with patients. I think it is the staff behind the front desk.

I just went in for a consultation. Even though I did wait for a while in the waiting room, it only took 5 minutes to see him! He even took a minute to come in and say hello and that he’ll be in when the x-​rays are done. He looked at the x-​rays and knew exactly what he wanted to do. Very nice guy. A rare find for a doctor! I’ll update this when I finish my surgery!

Picture this:
February 2010, I fell from a tree (never mind what I was doing its not part of the story) and twisted my ankle. Bruised, swollen and unable to bare weight on it, I hobbled to the ER for an x-​ray, I was certain this foot was broken. X-​rays showed no fractures and I was told its a sprain and just go through the RICE method for a few weeks. (Rest, Ice, Compression and Elevate) 3 weeks later still in pain, unable to walk, swollen and bruised. I was sent to a orthopedic specialist (see review on Dr. John K. Frazier) I saw his PA (physician assistant) and was told it was a grade III sprain and I need a walking boot and physical therapy. I went through physical therapy for about 12 weeks and still wasn’t feeling 100% Went back to Dr. Frazier’s office and was pretty much blown off and told it would take at least 6 months to heal. 6 Months came and went and I was still in pain. My Primary physician told me since it wasn’t broken I should see a DPM and sent me to Dr. Sokoloff.
6 Months after original injury:
I had my first appointment with Dr. Sokoloff. The front desk staff was amazing and his nurse, Pam was great! Dr. Sokoloff came into the exam room got a bit of history, made fun of me for falling from a tree then looked at my foot. He manipulated my foot for a few seconds then told me I need an MRI. He said I tore my lateral ligaments and there is no stability. I was scheduled for an MRI the very next day and it confirmed his suspicions. Dr. Sokoloff explained my only real option was surgery and I would benefit greatly by having it. We decided to go with the surgery. Dr. Sokoloff explained everything to me and answered all my questions.
9 weeks status post surgery:
Had my final post-​op check up: Surgery was a success and I feel great. I am back to running 3 – 4 miles/​day and have had no pain. I have been discharged from Dr. Sokoloff’s care and will see him on an as needed basis.
Great staff, great doctor!

Dr. Sokoloff IS a rock star. To make a long story short, I broke my foot about a year and a half ago. After a trip the ER, I was recommended to Dr. Sokoloff. After discussing treatment options, we (and I mean we, he and I) decided to go with the conservative approach knowing that there was a good chance it would not heal on it’s own. It didn’t. So, I elected for the surgery.
Dr. Sokoloff and I went over everything that was involved, the potential risks, and the expected outcome. This was not a trivial surgery either… it was going to take some time to do and to heal. He did a great job. The surgery was a little over a year ago and my foot has been as good as new since.
In addition to this, his office staff was awesome at helping me with my paper work and scheduling. They are rock stars too!
If you ever find yourself in the unfortunate position of needing a podiatrist, I totally recommend Dr. Sokoloff.

If you need foot surgery, DO NOT go to Dr. Howard Sokoloff!!! He messed up my foot so badly in surgery that I had to have a 2^nd foot surgery (of course I went to a MUCH better Dr. this time). This is what I wish I knew before I had surgery with Dr. Sokoloff… NEVER, I repeat, NEVER get surgery done by a Podiatrist. ALWAYS get the surgery done by an Orthopedic Surgeon. Podiatrists are fine for fixing minor problems, but if you need bunion surgery or something similar, DO NOT go to this Dr. or any Podiatrist. Podiatrists have less schooling than Orthopedic Surgeons. I had to go through the pain and agony all over again and take sick time off work again because Dr. Sokoloff made my foot worse.
He was supposed to fix the small bunion on my pinky toe, but when he broke the bone, he left a large piece of bone sticking out. So I ended up having a HUGE protrusion on my pinky toe. It pissed me off that every time I asked to see my x-​rays, they had an excuse as to why I couldn’t see them (I KNEW something was wrong, but they kept denying it). A few months after my surgery, he finally let me see my x-​rays and told me that piece of bone «should have dissolved.» What?! Dissolved? I’ve asked 4 doctors about this and they all said bone doesn’t just dissolve. Before my 2^nd surgery, I found out that part of my foot (the bone that was protruding) had died and I needed a bone from a cadaver to fix my foot. Thanks a lot Dr. Sokoloff.
Dr. Sokoloff also overcorrected the bunion on my large toe, so I had to get that fixed as well.
My foot was still very painful after the surgery and what I found out later was Dr. Sokoloff did not see the arthritis in my foot (which my current Dr. saw right away & fixed during surgery).
Stay away from Dr. Sokoloff unless you want surgery twice.