Foot Pain: Causes, Symptoms & Treatment
Written By: Dr. Mohamed Ghanem
Updated On:January 29, 2025
What is Foot Pain?
Your feet support your weight all day long, allowing you to do even the simplest activities. As a result, foot pain is quite common. Any ache or discomfort in one or more-foot regions is referred to as foot pain. The foot includes the toes, heels, arches, and soles.
Causes of Foot Pain
Foot pain might be brought on by a medical condition or particular lifestyle choices. Such causes include the following:
Lifestyle causes of foot pain:
- Foot pain is frequently brought on by wearing improperly fitting shoes. Because they put a lot of pressure on the toes, wearing high heels can frequently result in foot pain.
- Injuries sustained while participating in high-impact sports or activity, such as jogging or vigorous aerobics, can also result in foot pain.
Common health problems that cause foot pain:
- Your feet are particularly prone to the pain that arthritis causes. The 33 joints of the foot can all be impacted by arthritis.
- Diabetes mellitus can also result in complications and a number of foot diseases. Diabetes patients are more vulnerable to suffering from foot pain.
- Clogged or hardened arteries in the legs, and foot ulcers or sore nerve damage in the feet, can cause foot pain.
Symptoms of Foot Pain
There are many typical foot pain symptoms that accompany both pain and other foot conditions. These include the following:
- Altered sensation in the foot
- Swollen feet and ankles
- Burning sensation in the foot
- Calf and foot cramps
- Blisters
- Foot rashes
- Numbness in the foot
- Sharp pain in the big toe
- Foot lumps and bumps
- Thickened or yellow toenails
When to see a doctor for Foot Pain?
Many people who suffer from foot pain frequently are aware of the causes of their discomfort and how to treat it effectively. But, in the following circumstances, you should contact a doctor as soon as possible:
- You experience abrupt, intense pain.
- Your recent injury is the cause of your foot pain.
- Following an injury, you cannot put any weight on your foot.
- You feel foot discomfort because of a medical problem that affects blood flow.
- You have an open wound in the area that hurts.
- Your painful spot may be discolored or show other signs of inflammation.
- You also have a fever and foot ache.
Foot Pain Risk Factors
You might be at a greater risk of suffering from foot pain:
- Have obesity or are overweight
- Have a foot ailment, such as a sprain, fracture, or tendonitis
- Pregnant
Foot pain may also be brought on by:
- Foot-swelling
- Medication
- Corns or calluses
- Bunions
- Warts
- Ingrown toenails
- Morton’s neuroma
- Haglund’s deformity
Foot Pain Complications
Chronic foot pain can lead to back, hip, and knee discomfort. Moreover, foot issues can result in imbalance, poor posture, and even organ malfunction. As a result, serious medical conditions may develop.
Foot Pain Diagnosis
A thorough history taken from the patient is the first stage in determining the origin of foot pain issues. Your nature, duration, location, start, and type of pain will all be discussed with you by a skilled foot and ankle doctor. They might also inquire as to if any peculiar circumstances contributed to your uncomfortable condition and whether you've taken any steps to successfully relieve it. Your foot specialist can make the correct diagnosis with the help of all this information.
An extensive physical examination is the next stage in the diagnosis of foot pain. Your doctor will examine your feet by touching them, pressing on certain locations to elicit pain, such as your foot arch, and determining your range of motion, muscular strength, sensitivity, and circulation. A skilled doctor will also observe how you walk because specific gait patterns can lead to foot pain. It is crucial to contact a physician who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of the foot, ankle, and lower leg, or a podiatrist, as anybody less than a qualified foot and ankle specialist will not be properly trained in gait analysis.
Foot Pain Treatment
The cause of your foot pain will determine the course of treatment. Simple solutions like shoe inserts can be extremely relieving for some people. These are available without a prescription or over-the-counter. Others symptoms could require the following:
- A cast
- Physical therapy
- Medication
- Removal surgery
Foot Pain Prevention
Yet, there are certain precautions you may do to prevent foot pain. Here are seven techniques for sustaining your feet so that you can maintain your support.
- Keep your weight at a healthy level: Your entire body rests on your feet, which must work more laboriously the more weight is supported by them.
- Increase flexibility: As you age, your calf muscles may become tighter, which puts additional strain on the balls of your feet.
- Kick off your heels habit: Heels may improve the look of your dress, but they are terrible on your feet. According to one study, the pain begins to manifest after just 1 hour and 6 minutes of wearing them.
- Wear shoes that fit your size: As you age, your feet change shape, and wearing tight-fitting shoes can result in heel pain, misshapen toes, bunions, corns, calluses, ingrown toenails, and a variety of other uncomfortable issues.
- Take a seat during breaks: If your employment requires you to be on your feet for the most of the day, take breaks to rest your feet. Avoid the temptation to do errands while eating lunch and choose a seated meal instead.
- While trimming toenails, don't skimp. Ingrown toenails, which occur when the nail's edge grows into the skin around the toe, are a common cause of foot pain. Straight toenail cutting is the best defense against this.
References
Dufour, A. B., Broe, K. E., Nguyen, U. S. D., Gagnon, D. R., Hillstrom, H. J., Walker, A. H., ... & Hannan, M. T. (2009). Foot pain: is current or past shoewear a factor?. Arthritis care & research, 61(10), 1352-1358.
Hawke, F., & Burns, J. (2009). Understanding the nature and mechanism of foot pain. Journal of foot and ankle research, 2(1), 1-11.
Leveille, S. G., Guralnik, J. M., Ferrucci, L., Hirsch, R., Simonsick, E., & Hochberg, M. C. (1998). Foot pain and disability in older women. American journal of epidemiology, 148(7), 657-665.
Riskowski, J. L., Hagedorn, T. J., & Hannan, M. T. (2011). Measures of foot function, foot health, and foot pain. Arthritis care & research, 63(0 11), S229.
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