It's almost the long weekend and we're ready for it at Littleton Foot and Ankle Clinic. It's been a busy week and we are trying to get you in as quickly as possible. Remember, do we require you to wear a mask when you come see us. It's not only for your safety, but for your family's, your friends, ours, and everyone else. We will be masked up, so we ask the same of you.
Today we're talking about, stop, Hammertoe. You might have hammertoes if your toes bend down. It typically isn't an issue, unless it is causing pressure on your toes when you are wearing shoes. So, what is Hammertoe?
Hammertoe is a contracture (bending) deformity of one or both joints of the second, third, fourth or fifth (little) toes. This abnormal bending can put pressure on the toe when wearing shoes, causing problems to develop.
Hammertoes usually start out as mild deformities and get progressively worse over time. In the earlier stages, hammertoes are flexible and the symptoms can often be managed with noninvasive measures. But if left untreated, hammertoes can become more rigid and will not respond to nonsurgical treatment.
Because of the progressive nature of hammertoes, they should receive early attention. Hammertoes never get better without some kind of intervention.
Causes
The most common cause of hammertoe is a muscle/tendon imbalance. This imbalance, which leads to a bending of the toe, results from mechanical (structural) or neurological changes in the foot that occur over time in some people.
Hammertoes may be aggravated by shoes that do not fit properly. A hammertoe may result if a toe is too long and is forced into a cramped position when a tight shoe is worn. Occasionally, hammertoe is the result of an earlier trauma to the toe. In some people, hammertoes are inherited.
Symptoms
Common symptoms of hammertoes include:
Pain or irritation of the affected toe when wearing shoes.
Corns and calluses (a buildup of skin) on the toe, between two toes or on the ball of the foot. Corns are caused by constant friction against the shoe. They may be soft or hard, depending on their location.
Inflammation, redness or a burning sensation
Contracture of the toe
In more severe cases of hammertoe, open sores may form.
Diagnosis
Although hammertoes are readily apparent, to arrive at a diagnosis, the foot and ankle surgeon will obtain a thorough history of your symptoms and examine your foot. During the physical examination, the doctor may attempt to
... keep reading on reddit ➡I was just in a group with a level 60, and we killed this NPC who was tagged as PVP for us, but the level 60 got a DK for him and showed a screenshot of him being tagged as civilian? What's up with this inconsistent behavior, anyone know?
I have never seen anybody about my hammer toe but in the last couple weeks it's causing me issues.
I'm from Ireland but I'm assuming US terms of cover is similar, my policy states pre existing conditions have a 3 year waiting period that's why I'm asking if this condition is pre existing if it's only causing pain now.
Any answers are appreciated, thank you folks 😌
I'm 11 months out from a botched foot surgery in Glendale, California. He claimed he ran out of time and the original surgeon didn't even show because he forgot.
I'm a healthy, in shape 51 year old female. I am still in a surgical shoe. I can barely walk normal, swelling, constant pain, stiffness, arthritic, nerve issues, bunion still there, big toe curves in and goes under the fat hammertoe that sticks up. It's been a nightmare to say the least and quite depressing.
I have consulted with many doctors about a corrective surgery. The last one was the first to mention the arthritis and his approach would be to fuse the big toe. All the others were going to do the typical Chevron, Akin to correct it and pin down the hammertoe.
I can't imagine having a life not being able to wear a heeled shoe or enjoy the activities I have always enjoyed in the past.
Thoughts about this procedure?
And, if you are a doctor responding, does this sound like this resulted in below the standard level of care? Would you have an outcome like that if you had performed it?
Pretend I am your mother and don't judge me, but I am now seeing if I have any legal recourse. It sucks how protected these crappy, pompous doctors can be. I literally went in for something that is common and routine and came out so much worse.
Now, I'm even considering not doing a second surgery and living with this hot mess.
Thanks in advance.
You may have seen a video posted in another subreddit about hammertoe surgery. Here's the explanatory video if you missed it.
I had this surgery over the summer! Get this: all 4 of the small toes on my right foot were done in June and, once they healed, the same was done on the left in August. I had the surgery once before, about 30 years ago (I'm 48 now). I didn't have it done earlier (like 15 years ago) because it requires a significant amount of time off.
When I scheduled the follow-up appointments, the doctor told me to expect all six screws to be removed. At the appointment, he said the screws looked great and that he wanted to leave them in permanently unless they started "migrating out" of my toes. So far, so good.
Back in 1990 (my first surgery), podiatrists used metal pins inserted through the end of each toe to hold it in place while the bones knit. The problem was two-fold: the ends of the pins stuck out of each toe and I was heavily medicated with Darvon. I didn't notice the pins were being bent when they snagged my duvet. The podiatrist removed the pins 6 weeks later and acted as if my toes looked as he expected. They didn't (see photo #3). What followed was 30 years of pain, countless orthotic remedies, weight gain from not getting exercise, and dozens of bone spurs in my feet from my altered gait.
In the (disgusting) photos I've included, the middle left toe looks especially like Frankenstein's Monster. My toenails were also a mess from the trauma of walking on the tips of my toes for 30 years, but the yellow tint is Betadine. The third photo is why I needed the surgery in the first place.
https://imgur.com/Bflb1LJ.jpg
https://imgur.com/JPRGF1D.jpg
https://imgur.com/vo2aRA4.jpg
https://imgur.com/hfWrzVr.jpg
https://imgur.com/mNSweXJ.jpg
https://imgur.com/hhPZgwa.jpg
Hi,
About 2 months ago I smacked my left foot into a door frame. I hit my 3rd, 4th and 5th toes pretty hard, and fractured the distal phalange in my 5th toe. I previously had a hammer toe of my 5th toe, and since the injury, pain in that toe has persisted, and seems to be more associated with the hammer aspect of the toe rather than the fracture. I walked around in a boot for the first week after the injury and took it easy. I have a sort of burning pain in the tip of the toe and also pain over the lateral PIP. The toe is mildly dorsally elevated off of the ground as well, though I believe it was this way before the injury.
I have since seen 3 podiatrists. One says my toe is nowhere near bad enough to do surgery and that I should just change my shoes if it bothers me, one says I need surgery and need arthoplasty + MTP joint capsule release + extensor tendon lengthening, and another says that he could just to an extensor tenotomy and that would solve everything. Their descriptions and online descriptions of recovery time are all over the place--someone told me after 5th toe work I could return to shoes in 2 weeks while another said it would be months before I was comfortable again.
I am a medical student and was wondering how long it would likely be after arthroplasty + extensor lengthening before I could return to hospital, maybe in a cam boot?
Any advice/general opinions would be much appreciated.
I've suffered from severe flat feet for a long time, causing me a lot of pain. I had tried all types of supportive shoes, as well as custom orthotics, but still I was in pain.
I tried Lems Primal 2 and I was amazed at the results. Not only did the pain in my back, knees and ankles pretty much disappear, but my foot became strong and I developed an arch that wasn't there before. The shape of my foot also changed (e.g. my toes splayed out more).
Annoyingly, Lems don't do half sizes, so the ones I'm wearing are a bit too big (the size down is way too small).
For some reason, just in the past couple months, I've started to lose that change in shape. My toes no longer splay, but have become close together. All of my toes (except the big toe) now look like a case of hammertoe. It's worse on the left foot.
I feel like I've ruined my feet now and am worried I'll have to get surgery as it doesn't look very good.
Could this be a problem with wearing shoes too big?
Today, at Littleton Foot and Ankle Clinic, we're talking Hammertoes. Sure, it sounds silly, but it can be a serious problem. We see patients all year with hammertoes, but generally, we see more patients when people start wearing open toed shoes. So, what is Hammertoe?
Hammertoe is a contracture (bending) deformity of one or both joints of the second, third, fourth or fifth (little) toes. This abnormal bending can put pressure on the toe when wearing shoes, causing problems to develop.
Hammertoes usually start out as mild deformities and get progressively worse over time. In the earlier stages, hammertoes are flexible and the symptoms can often be managed with noninvasive measures. But if left untreated, hammertoes can become more rigid and will not respond to nonsurgical treatment.
Because of the progressive nature of hammertoes, they should receive early attention. Hammertoes never get better without some kind of intervention.
Causes
The most common cause of hammertoe is a muscle/tendon imbalance. This imbalance, which leads to a bending of the toe, results from mechanical (structural) or neurological changes in the foot that occur over time in some people.
Hammertoes may be aggravated by shoes that do not fit properly. A hammertoe may result if a toe is too long and is forced into a cramped position when a tight shoe is worn. Occasionally, hammertoe is the result of an earlier trauma to the toe. In some people, hammertoes are inherited.
Symptoms
Common symptoms of hammertoes include:
* Pain or irritation of the affected toe when wearing shoes.
* Corns and calluses (a buildup of skin) on the toe, between two toes or on the ball of the foot. Corns are caused by constant friction against the shoe. They may be soft or hard, depending on their location.
* Inflammation, redness or a burning sensation
* Contracture of the toe
* In more severe cases of hammertoe, open sores may form.
Diagnosis
Although hammertoes are readily apparent, to arrive at a diagnosis, the foot and ankle surgeon will obtain a thorough history of your symptoms and examine your foot. During the physical examination, the doctor may attempt to reproduce your symptoms by manipulating your foot and will study the contractures of the toes. In addition, the foot and ankle surgeon may take x-rays to determine the degree of the deformities and assess any changes that may have occurred.
Hammertoes are progressive—they do not go away by themselves and usually they will g
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