Often people go to the doctor because they feel pain in the foot under the toes when walking. At the same time, visually, in most of these patients, the skin of the sole is not damaged and there are no visible reasons that can cause discomfort. A diagnosis can only be made after a comprehensive examination.
Causes of pain
Specialists identify several factors that can lead to discomfort in the foot area. The main reasons that can cause pain in the foot under the toes when walking are the following:
- flat feet;
- erythromelalgia;
- rheumatoid arthritis;
- Morton's neuroma;
- age-related changes;
- osteomyelitis;
- traumatic lesions;
- ingrown nails;
- funicular myelosis;
- pain neuropathy;
- lack of calcium.
All of these factors can cause pain in the foot under the toes when walking. Treatment shouldbe prescribed by a doctor only after a complete examination of the patient and determining what exactly caused the unbearable discomfort.
Flat feet
Incorrect positioning of the foot leads to the fact that its depreciation properties are lost. Pain appears when it is necessary for a long time to stand on your feet, walk or run. Flat feet can be congenital or acquired. It arises due to the impact of prolonged loads on the ligamentous and muscular apparatus of the foot.
Flat feet may develop:
- after injuries and leg fractures;
- with increased load on the feet: during work associated with the need to constantly stand or walk;
- due to being overweight;
- with a sedentary lifestyle that causes muscle atrophy;
- due to wearing tight, uncomfortable shoes;
- against the background of the development of rickets, diabetes, poliomyelitis.
If a person has already been diagnosed with flat feet, then soon he may feel pain in the foot under the toes when walking. To which doctor to contact with this disease, you can find out from the local therapist. It is best if the diagnosis is carried out by an orthopedic surgeon.
Other orthopedic problems
Not only flat feet can cause pain. Often the cause of discomfort is a lack of calcium and developing osteoporosis. This disease can cause severe pain in the foot under the toes when walking. It is more difficult to find out which doctor to contact in this case. Indeed, for a complete examination, it will be necessary to consult with an endocrinologist, rheumatologist, orthopedist and traumatologist. Often this disease occurs due to hormonal disorders. Therefore, the consultation of an endocrinologist is so important.
Older people also often experience pain in the soles of their feet. The cause may be the development of bursitis or gout. In the first case, the problem develops due to the fact that the fat layer located in the area of the heads of the metatarsal bones loses its shock-absorbing properties. This causes inflammation to develop.
With gout, which is characterized by a metabolic disorder, the concentration of s alts in the blood rises, and they begin to be deposited in the joints on the legs. But with this disease, pain disturbs the patient mainly at night.
Choosing treatment tactics
Depending on the established diagnosis, the doctor prescribes treatment. In almost all cases, orthopedists recommend choosing an individual insole and wearing only comfortable shoes. This is necessary not only for flat feet.
Reducing the load on the legs will also help to alleviate the condition. After all, pain occurs in most cases just after a long walk, standing for a long time or running. After any load, they need rest: it is advisable to raise their legs above head level for at least 15 minutes.
It will be useful to do warm foot baths and foot massage. You can just walk on a special massage mat oruneven surface (e.g. scattered small stones).
With calcium deficiency and the threat of osteoporosis, it is necessary to drink special preparations containing this trace element. Both ordinary vitamins and products designed to strengthen blood vessels will be useful.
Arthritis and arthrosis
Excessive load on the legs, regular severe hypothermia can cause inflammation of the joints in the foot. This disease is called arthritis. It can cause pain under the toes when walking. Treatment is selected depending on the causes of the disease. After all, arthritis can develop due to exposure to viruses or bacteria.
Its beginning will be indicated not only by pain, but also by redness and severe swelling in the area of the joints. With neglected forms, people cannot even stand up normally. An exacerbation of the disease may occur after acute respiratory infections or ordinary hypothermia.
Arthrosis often causes pain in the foot under the toes when walking. Which doctor should you go to if you notice a “bone” on your thumb? Any arthritis and arthrosis should be de alt with by a special doctor - an arthrologist. But such a narrow-profile specialist is difficult to find in ordinary clinics. Therefore, if you have problems with your joints, you can contact surgeons, orthopedists and rheumatologists.
With arthrosis, cartilage in the joints is destroyed. This causes sudden short-term pain. Arthritis develops in older people, but with excess weight, excessive exercise, or geneticpredisposition, the disease may appear earlier.
Leg injuries
Even a minor blow can cause serious problems. Therefore, with pain in the feet, many are advised to take an x-ray and consult a traumatologist.
The foot contains many small bones and joints. Even with a dislocation, severe pain can occur. The condition worsens with any load on the problem foot. At the same time, not only pain in the foot under the toes when walking will help to suspect damage, but also a change in the normal position of the leg, swelling and redness.
Treatment tactics are selected depending on the condition. In some cases, the doctor may advise immobilizing the leg. This option is preferred for fractures.
Neuroma Mortana
When pathological thickening of the nerve of the foot, located between the fingers, doctors diagnose intertarsal neurinoma. It is also known as Mortana's neuroma. With this disease, pain is concentrated between the 3rd and 4th toes.
The development of intermetatarsal neurinoma leads to compression of the nerve by the heads of the bones. Because of this, it thickens, and the patient begins to feel pain. Women suffer from this disease mainly, who prefer tight high-heeled shoes.
This disease is treated by surgeons or orthopedists. But first you need to establish a diagnosis. To do this, you need to know the symptoms of a neuroma. These include:
- backaches in area 3 and 4toes;
- sensation of a foreign object in shoes;
- burning and tingling in the forefoot;
- pain that occurs after a load on the legs.
If the doctor, after listening to the patient's complaints, suspects the development of Morton's neuroma, then he should conduct a symptomatic diagnosis. For this, the patient's foot is compressed on both sides. After about 30-60 seconds. such exposure, the patient develops numbness, burning sensation or pain. An x-ray or MRI can help rule out other pathologies.
Treatment tactics for neuroma
Get rid of Morton's neuroma can be quite difficult. After all, it is not enough to understand why there is pain in the foot under the toes when walking. Than to treat, it is necessary to select individually. For some, changing shoes and using orthopedic insoles helps.
If the symptoms do not go away, then physiotherapy is prescribed. It can be acupuncture, magnetotherapy, electrophoresis, shock wave therapy. In the absence of a result, a blockade is made with the help of corticosteroid drugs. This allows you to remove inflammation, reduce swelling and causes regression of the neuroma.
But in advanced cases, surgery is needed. The surgeon may:
- remove Morton's neuroma: it is immobilized and excised through a 2 cm incision; active load on the legs is excluded for the healing period, but after the operation the patient can go home on his own;
- cut the transverse metatarsalligament: this helps relieve pressure on the nerve;
- Fracture the 4th metatarsal head to relieve pressure on the nerve - this method is rarely used.
Pain associated with neurological problems
In some cases, foot pain under the toes when walking is caused by diseases such as painful polyneuropathy or funicular myelosis. In the first case, there is a pronounced discomfort in the area of \u200b\u200bthe feet. This disease often develops against the background of diabetes in cases where the concentration of glucose in the blood is not too high.
Funicular myelosis develops against the background of vitamin B12 deficiency. This condition may occur due to its insufficient intake into the body or due to a violation of the mechanism of its assimilation. Discomfort occurs due to the fact that the nerve conduction in the spinal cord is disturbed. This leads to the fact that quite severe pain in the foot under the fingers when walking can appear. Treatment with folk remedies in this case will not help. It is necessary to quickly replenish the deficiency of vitamin B12. This is done with the help of intramuscular injections of 4000 mcg every 2-3 days. After 2 weeks, the dosage is gradually reduced to 100 mcg. This therapy may continue for several months.
Vascular disease
If you have pain in the legs, you should consult with a phlebologist, cardiologist, neurologist, angiologist. After all, one of the reasons that pain appears in the foot under the toes when walking is problems with blood vessels.
Men often face such a disease as endarteritis. So called inflammation of the arteries, which develops mainly in the legs. At the first steps, the patient does not feel discomfort, but over time, the pain begins to intensify, a feeling of heaviness and numbness appears. The condition improves after a short rest, but with the slightest exertion it worsens again.
Phlebitis and varicose veins are also causes of pain in the legs. But with these diseases, they are not always concentrated in the forefoot, but can also capture other parts of the legs.
Methods of alternative therapy
Not everyone goes to the doctor when they feel pain in the foot under the toes when walking. How to treat (folk remedies can be found for any occasion), such patients are trying to find out on their own or with the help of traditional healers. This is quite dangerous, because there is a risk of triggering the disease.
Any methods of alternative medicine can be used after consultation with your doctor. After all, first you need to figure out what exactly led to the appearance of pain.
For arthritis, you can use a mustard compress. To prepare it, you need to take 1 tablespoon of dry mustard, olive oil and honey. All these components are mixed and boiled. After that, the compress is applied to the problem area.
For almost all diseases, you can do foot massage and relaxing baths. These are safe folk treatments that will help temporarily relieve pain andrelax problem feet. It is important to pay attention to the rest of the legs and do special gymnastics for the feet.
