Your Crooked Toes May Be Hammer Toes

(source)

Do you have crooked toes or toes that look like little hammers or claws? You may have hammer toes. A hammer toe or contracted toe is a deformity caused by a tendon imbalance on the second, third or fourth toe causing it to be permanently bent, resembling a hammer. Mallet toe and claw toe are similar to hammer toes.

Hammer toes are most often caused from wearing ill fitted shoes that force the toe into a bent position. Wearing these shoes for long periods of time can cause the muscles in them to shorten, resulting in the hammer toe deformity.

The hammer toe deformity can be flexible, semi-rigid, or rigid in nature. In a flexible hammer toe, the joint has the ability to move. This type of hammer toe can be straightened manually. A rigid or semi-rigid hammer toe does not have that same ability to move. Movement is very limited and can be extremely painful. This sometimes causes foot movement to become restricted leading to extra stress to the ball of the foot, and possibly causing pain and may also cause painful corns and calluses on the top of the digit (at the joint) and at the tip of the toe--due to pressure--or under the ball of the foot from retrograde pressure.

Conservative treatment starts with new shoes with soft, deep toe boxes to avoid rubbing.  Your podiatrist may also recommend padding to decrease pressure on the area.

Surgery would be the final resort. Your podiatrist can do a simple procedure done in office called Percutaneous Tenotomy, which releases the contracted tendon. For more serious hammer toes, your podiatrist can do 1 or 2 surgeries in the operating room. Arthroplasty is a surgery to relieve pain and restore range of motion by reconstructing a joint. Arthrodesis is a surgical procedure which fuses the bones that form a joint, essentially eliminating the joint.

 If you have hammer toes and live in the Dayton/Springfield area, Community Foot Specialists can help! Call today to schedule your appointment. We’re always accepting new patients! 937-426-9500

Question of the Month: I'm a diabetic, do I need diabetic shoes?

(source)

Question of the Month!

By: Dr. Thomas

Q: "I'm a diabetic, do I need diabetic shoes?"

A: That depends. Diabetics who are well controlled with their blood sugar, do not have toe deformities such as bunions or hammertoes, intact circulation to their feet as well as intact sensation or feeling in their feet, are at low risk and do not need diabetic shoes. Diabetic shoes are considered to be a necessity for those diabetics who have an at risk foot or a foot that could be in danger of developing a wound in an otherwise normal everyday shoe. These shoes are designed with extra depth to accommodate the foam inserts which are used to reduce chances of a foot ulcer on the bottom of the foot. Some patients may be interested in these shoes for the simple fact they believe they can get free shoes and the insurance will sometimes "pay for them". This is not the purpose of diabetic shoes. To determine if the diabetic patient is eligible for shoes, the podiatric doctor will perform a comprehensive diabetic foot exam first to check to see if the feet are at high risk for developing problems such as ulcerations. If the need is determined, then your doctor will do all steps necessary to see that the patient gets those shoes and that they are fit correctly.