What are the Cause and Symptoms of Hammertoe?

If you are a fan of wearing high heels or tight fitting shoes, you might be a candidate for a painful foot condition. While some say the price of beauty is pain, after awhile, you will want to find something that will help your feet feel better, without severe pain. This blog is going to look at the condition that you may have recently received a diagnosisof, or you may have diagnosed yourself called hammertoe. We will look at what this condition is, what causes it, and the various symptoms surrounding it. 

What Is Hammertoe?

Hammertoe is a condition that affects your toes, instead of the bottom of your feet. It causes your toes to bend in an odd direction at the joint, causing pain and swelling. Often times people confuse hammertoe with mallet toe, but the two are different. Hammertoe affects the middle joint of your toe closest to your big toe and mallet toe affects the joint at the toenail of the same toe. With hammertoe, you will notice your toe bending unnaturally at an angle and curving downwards. Do not panic if you see this. This condition is very treatable, which we will talk about in another blog. Let’s take a look at the various causes of hammertoe and what symptoms you should keep an eye out for if you wear high heels frequently. 

What Are The Causes?

One of the most common causes of hammertoe is as mentioned above, from certain shoes. Mostly it is from high heels, but can also be caused by shoes that fit tight around your toes, forcing them to bend at an odd angle. This happens after you wear these shoes after a long period of time, and you may not notice it until you wear heels or tight shoes for a few years.

Improper shoes are not the only cause of hammertoe, which is why if you believe you have it, you should seek medical care. Trauma to your toes can also cause this condition. This can be if you stub your toe on your coffee table, drop something heavy on your toes, or break a toe. This can increase the likelihood of getting a hammertoe. It can also be a symptom of nerve injuries or disorders. If you have nerve damage, you are more likely to get this condition,as well asa nerve disorder you may have. Check with your doctor if you have the symptoms of hammertoe to make sure there is not an underlying issue. 

What Are The Symptoms?

There are only a few symptoms that accompany hammertoe. The most obvious symptom is that of an abnormal bend in your toes. You know your toes pretty well, so if they no longer look like they used to, then you should seek your doctor’s advice and help. The other symptoms that come with hammertoe are pain when moving the affected joint, and you may realize that it is more difficult to move that particular toe. You might even notice some swelling from the pain. You can take NSAIDs to help alleviate the pain and bring any swelling down. If you do not seek medical help, your toe could have corns and calluses forming on them because of rubbing against your shoes. 

Hammertoe is very treatable and something that does not have to change much about your life. If you think you might have it, go to your doctor and learn which steps you should take to get healing and relief. The Orthotic Shop offers a lot of great orthotic shoes that can help with hammertoe and relieve the pain. Please take a look around to find something that can work for you!