AngryOrthopod
Hammer Toe and Your Pain
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Question: "Once the 2nd toe has 'crossed over,' can the stretches help to avoid surgery? Would love to walk barefoot again without pain."
The short answer is yes, but it depends on the source of the pain. The skinny is that the hammer toe and the pain may not be the same thing.
Second MTP synovitis pain is experienced in the ball of the foot. Hammer toe pain is felt on the knuckle (top of PIP joint) sticking up and hitting the top of the shoe. These are clear and different pains. And it does not require an ultrasound or MRI to tell the difference. Just a few questions and a bit of simple exam will do. The problem is we look at the foot, SEE the hammer toe sticking up and maybe crossing over and at the same time feel pain, thus they are the same problem.
Accurate aim and shot - wrong target!
Here is the kicker, the original inciting problem, the isolated gastrocnemius contracture can be fixed without surgery thus fixing the actual pain, the second MTP synovitis. Sometimes one must think outside the box.
I think you get it.
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Archived Comments
Below is a collection of comments from previous versions of the blog. They are preserved for historical context and the richness they add to our discussions. If I lost them I would be angry indeed.
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Keep moving, my friends,
AO
Mary B. on March 10, 2021 at 8:20 pm
I would love your take on my problem. My problem seems to have started November 2018 when I went Christmas shopping for 3 days wearing a pair of wedge ankle boots( first time that season) that had never given me any problems. Both feet generally hurt all over afterwards, but the holidays were approaching and I thought they would get better. In Jan. I had sharp pain on top of my feet, burning, tingling and cramping mostly at forefront of feet. The sharp pain did go away within a week. I went to a podiatrist and he told me my shoes were too small and narrow for my feet and to soak…
Sue Jones on January 9, 2021 at 11:38 am
Hello, the podiatrist just told me I have hammertoe -my second toe on both feet have a hump on the joint -so far the only pain is certain shoes may rub. Are there exercises I can do to correct this or to stop it from getting far worse? My podiatrist didn’t offer anything, I was actually there for a different foot injury and he just mentioned I have hammertoe. I started researching it once I got home it seems there should be some exercises to help lengthen those muscles. Thank you for your time.
aoeditor on January 9, 2021 at 2:23 pm
Hi Sue,Good history,
The root cause of your hammertoe is equinus…
Elizabeth Herring on November 10, 2017 at 5:55 am
I unfortunately just had foot surgery, and am in complete misery. I have always had very, very muscular, large, tight calves. I would be most grateful if I could get the stretching protocol.
aoeditor on December 28, 2017 at 1:02 pm
Hi Elizebeth,
Apologies for my tardiness. I hope the surgical result has turned around and you are doing much better. The calf stretching protocol is one of my latest blogs actually. I have been busier than a rooster in a henhouse, but I plan to be back in action from here on out. Now stop reading and start stretching.
Keep moving, my friends,
AO
Terre on August 21, 2015 at 9:14 pm
So, my 2nd metasarsal has not grown too long bending and pushing thru the plantar plate? My calves, because I have aged, are too tight? So how does one stretch out their calves? I kinda don’t think my calves are tight, but I love the idea! So much better than a bone that lengthened and needs to be shortened via surgery. So how does one stretch their calves if they don’t feel tight?Thanks!
aoeditor on September 22, 2015 at 9:28 pm
Hi Terre,
Most of us with problems in the foot and ankle (greater than 20 in all and 65% of presenting problems in my tertiary practice) secondary to the isolated gastrocnemius contracture are…