Foot Pain Causes?
Foot pain may be caused by many different diseases, biomechanical conditions, or injuries. Acute or repeated trauma, disease, or combinations of the problems are the most common causes of foot pain and are commonly seen in sports and workplace environments that require physical activity Trauma is a result of forces outside of the body either directly impacting the body or forcing the body into a position where a single or combination of forces result in damage to the structures of the body. Poor biomechanical alignment may lead to foot pain. Wearing shoes that are too tight or high heels can cause pain around the balls of the feet and the bones in that area. Shoes that are tied too tightly may cause pain and bruising on the top of the foot.
Injuries such as ligament sprains, muscle strains, bruises, and fractures typically occur suddenly (acutely). Sprains, strains, bruises, and fractures may be the result of a single or combination of stresses to the foot. A sprain of the foot or ankle occurs when ligaments that hold the bones together are overstretched and their fibers tear or stretch too far. The looseness of ligaments in the joints of the foot may lead to foot pain.
The muscle's bursa and fascia of the foot can be strained by overstretching, overuse, overloading, bruising, or a cut (such as by stepping on a sharp object). Achilles tendonitis is a common injury of the tendon that attaches at the back of the heel.
Injury to the bones and joints of the foot can be caused by a single blow or twist to the foot, or also by repetitive trauma that can result in a stress fracture. A blunt-force injury such as someone stepping on your foot may result not only in a bruise (contusion) injury but also damage to the muscles and ligaments of the foot. Direct blows to the foot can cause bruising, breaking of the skin, or even fracturing of bones. Metarsalgia is the irritation of the joints of the ball of the foot. The term "stone bruise" is commonly referred to as a specific localized pain and tenderness of the bottom of the foot. "Turf toe" is a common athletic injury in which the tendon under the joint at the base of the big toe is strained. Trauma to the toenail can cause pooling of blood under the nail and the temporary or permanent loss of a toenail. Repetitive trauma to the bones, muscles, and ligaments can result in extra bone growth known as spurs or exostoses.
Sprains, injuries to the ligaments of the foot, occur when ligaments are overstretched. The ligaments that attach the foot to the ankle are also commonly sprained.
Injuries to both the skin covering and the internal structures may also be caused by multiple small repetitive traumas. Microtrauma injuries can be caused by running on uneven surfaces or surfaces that are too hard or too soft, or by wearing shoes that have poor force-absorption qualities or fit incorrectly. Thickenings of tissue of the outer foot and toes are commonly known as bunions, corns, and calluses. These are often caused by poor-fitting shoes. Morton's neuroma caused by thickening of tissue around a nerve between the toes can cause toe numbness and pain and may also be aggravated by poor-fitting shoes. Footwear can be a contributor to foot pain. Poor-fitting shoes in the short term can cause blisters, bruising, and be a source of athlete's foot. The long-term effects may be bunions, corns, irritation of nerves and joints, misalignment of the toes, and the source of microtrauma injuries to the foot.
Repeated overstressing of the same structure of the foot may cause stress fractures, tendonitis, plantar fasciitis, and acute and chronic osteoarthritis. Stress fractures commonly occur in the metatarsal bones, the long bones of the foot.
The arches of the feet absorb and return force to and from the body to the outside world when we are standing on our feet. Injury to the plantar fascia is a common cause of arch pain. The plantar fascia is a tough fibrous sheath that extends the length of the bottom of the foot and lends support to the arch. When the plantar fascia is damaged, the resulting inflammatory response may become a source of arch pain. High and low arches (flat feet) may cause pain because of strain to the feet.
Disease, viruses, fungi, and bacteria may also be the sources of foot pain. Diabetes, Hansen's disease, arthritis, and gout are common diseases that affect the foot. Disorders of the nerves to the feet may cause numbness and burning sensation in the feet known as peripheral neuropathy.
Plantar warts on the bottom of the foot are caused by a virus and can cause irritation. Athlete's foot, which is caused by a fungus, also can lead to foot irritation. A common cause of foot pain is the ingrown toenail. Ingrown toenails occur when the edges of the nail grow through or into the skin, resulting in irritation and sometimes leading to infection.
Symptoms and signs may accompany foot pain?
Pain and point tenderness are the immediate indicators that something is wrong in a specific area. The onset of pain, whether suddenly or over time, is an important indicator of the cause of the problem. The following questions are also important.
Is there pain with movement of the affected area?
Is it affected by weight-bearing?
Does it change your walking motion?
Bones of the foot are joined together by ligaments. A sprain occurs when the ligaments that hold the bones together are overstretched and the fibers tear. Point tenderness and looseness of a joint can be indicators of a sprain.
Injury to the bones of the foot can be caused by a single blow or twist to the arch or also by repetitive trauma that can result in a stress fracture. Fractures are indicated by a focal point of pain that may be exquisitely tender on the bone. There may be a distinguishable lump or gap at the site of the fracture. A rotated toe or forefoot may also be a sign of a fracture or dislocation.
Muscle and tendons move the body tissues around the joints. A strain occurs when a muscle or group of muscles are stressed to the point where there is tearing of the muscle fibers. The muscles and tendons of the foot may be strained by overstretching, overuse, overloading, bruising, or even being lacerated. Weakness in contraction of a joint, difficulty in stabilizing body parts, and pain working against resistance are signs of muscle problems. Swelling, tenderness, loss of function, and discoloration over and around the injury of can be symptoms and signs of a strain.
Bruises (contusions) are most commonly the result of a direct impact injury to the body. A bruise can occur to the foot by a variety of causes, such as having your foot stepped on or by stepping on a rock. Blows to the foot that result in pain, discoloration, swelling, and changes in how you walk may indicate more serious damage such as fractured bone.
Pain and tenderness associated with planter fascia strains are usually felt on the bottom of the foot between the heel and the base of the toes. Plantar fascia pain may be increased or decreased by stretching of the arch. In mild cases of plantar fasciitis, the pain will decrease as the soft tissues of the foot "warm up," however, pain may increase as use of the foot increases. In more severe cases of plantar fasciitis, pain may increase when the arch is stressed. Often the sufferer of plantar fasciitis will feel pain in the morning until the plantar fascia warms up. Foot pain at night may be a sign of plantar fasciitis as well as other possible problems.
A sensation of rubbing or burning on the surface of the foot is usually the first signs of a blister. Itching and burning sensations between the toes or around the foot indicate a skin infection or athlete's foot. Pain and redness at the edge of a toenail are usually the result of an ingrown toenail.
When should I seek medical treatment for Foot Pain?
When the pain begins to interfere with your activities of daily living or if you cannot perform your desired activities without pain, you should consider seeking medical attention. Indicators that you should seek medical care are if the area looks deformed, you have loss of function, change of sensation, a large amount of swelling with pain, prolonged change of skin or toenail color, the affected area becomes warmer than the surrounding areas, becomes exquisitely tender to the touch, or is causing you to move differently.
Source: http://www.medicinenet.com/
