Weird Problem With A Toe

Discussion in 'Health & Wellness' started by John Brunner, Jun 22, 2021.

  1. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    I finally got in to see a podiatrist today (it took 4 weeks to get an appointment.)

    5-6 weeks ago I got out of bed and the pad of the second toe on my right foot felt as though I stepped on a needle...but there was nothing in it. The pain subsided and went away for a few days. Then I got out of bed in the middle of the night again and had the same pain. Again, there is nothing in my toe. The happened several times.

    The symptoms have expanded. Sometimes it feels as though there is a paper cut or a slit wound down the length of my toe, and when I step off of it, it feels as though the wound slightly opens up and then closes again. It also sometimes feels as though there is a water blister or loose skin on the pad, and when I step off of it I can feel the skin kinda sag and slowly return to shape. I can squeeze my toe, bend my toe, put weight on my toe, do what I want to my toe, and I cannot cause the sensation, nor can I make the toe hurt. I feel no weirdness in it, and it looks fine. It only gets these sensations when I step off of it, and only then when I'm not wearing shoes. It went form an occasional thing to an all-the-time thing when I'm not wearing shoes.

    The podiatrist took a couple of x-rays and saw nothing but said "There is something in there" [by feel] but did not elaborate. I can't feel anything there when I mess with it. He also said "Toe tumors are very rare." I'm waiting to have an MRI scheduled.
     
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  2. Hoot Crawford

    Hoot Crawford Veteran Member
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    I have a lot of odd pains in my feet and toes. My PCP sez it's part of the neuropathy, which in turn is part of diabetes type 2.
     
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  3. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    I fully expected the guy to tell me it was a nerve problem, since I could not feel anything in there. My GP did blood work to test for vitamin/mineral deficiencies and that wasn't it. If the MRI does not show what's going on, surgery is next. Even if the MRI does show what's going on, I suspect there will be surgery of some kind.
     
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  4. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    So I left the doctor's office Tuesday afternoon, had the MRI people call me Wednesday afternoon, and I'm scheduled to have the procedure Thursday afternoon.

    I got no complaints.
     
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    Last edited: Jun 23, 2021
  5. Shirley Martin

    Shirley Martin Supreme Member
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    My grandson had similar symptoms. It turned out that he had a bone infection in his toe. They had no idea how the bone became infected. He had to wear some kind of pressure boot and have intravenous antibiotics for a couple of months. The nurse came every day and did the antibiotic treatment.

    If it is a bone infection, it can be fatal.
     
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  6. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    There's lots of bad stuff it can be, that's for sure. I'm worried it took 4 weeks just to see a doctor. The only encouraging thing is that when I called and gave my symptoms, there wasn't a "Get in here ASAP!" response...not that I completely trust the system.
     
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  7. Hedi Mitchell

    Hedi Mitchell Supreme Member
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    have you gone barefoot outside in say last six months ?
     
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  8. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    I have not gone outside barefoot in the past 30 years or so...ever since I found out I have a bee sting allergy.
     
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  9. Hedi Mitchell

    Hedi Mitchell Supreme Member
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    ok - I do not know then what could be up with your toe. According to reflexology chart that part of toe is sinus. However other organs surround the toe like eyes. Kind of tricky since there are so many other organs grouped together in a small area. Thought looking at the chart might gimme an idea, but still at a loss,sorry. Keep us posted
     
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    Last edited: Jun 24, 2021
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  10. Bobby Cole

    Bobby Cole Supreme Member
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    Gloria reminded me of our Ionic Foot bath and Detox machine. It’s kinda creepy all the stuff it pulls out of my feet and after about a year the jury is still out but I like it anyway.
     
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  11. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    It's weird, but it's gone from being occasional to being continuous. Some of the stuff I read says the earlier you catch it, the greater the odds of addressing it (like the thing with Shirley Martin's grandson.) But it took 4 weeks to get in to see a doctor.
     
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  12. Yvonne Smith

    Yvonne Smith Senior Staff
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    You might want to try one of the ionic footbath, @John Brunner . We found a doctor who did the foot baths and went to try one. So much gunk came out that we decided to buy one. We just got one of the cheap ones, but it did have good ratings even so.
    Here is the thread that talks about ionic foot baths, and it has more information and pictures.

    http://www.seniorsonly.club/threads/ionic-foot-detox-bath.
     
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  13. John Brunner

    John Brunner Senior Staff
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    Thanks. I'll check it out.

    The whole thing is weird. There's been no injury, there's no physical deformation, and I can twist & squeeze the toe and not cause any discomfort whatsoever.
     
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  14. Yvonne Smith

    Yvonne Smith Senior Staff
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    I think that @Gloria Mitchell has an excellent thought, about the possibility that you somehow got some kind of sliver in your toe at some point, and it is now working its way out to where you feel it when you step with that toe.
    Many years ago, my first husband had his thumb, and part of his hand swell up, and had no idea what happened. He thought maybe it had been a bee sting, but didn’t remember getting stung. It kept getting worse, so his boss at work took him to the doctor, who gave him antibiotics to take, and he had no idea what it was either.
    By that weekend, the swelling was horrible, and we began to worry that the doctor might want to amputate my husband’s thumb, and he was in a lot of pain constantly.

    We went to visit my mom and dad, and mom was asking my husband if he remembered getting anything , even a sliver (which was common for a lineman to have happen) , and he eventually remembered having a sliver but way down in the pad of his hand and not up into the thumb.
    My mom put on a chunk of her aloe vera leaf, and bandaged it all up and said to leave it over night.

    The next morning, the swelling was gone out of the thumb, and there was a big swollen area in the thumb pad instead. When my mom lanced it, and cleaned it out, there was a small sliver, and it was wood that was treated with creosote, making it even worse.
    A little sliver from working on the woodpile, or even a metal shard , if it somehow got into your toe, could be the cause of the problem. If you have some aloe vera, you can try putting some on the toe and binding it up and leaving it over night.
    It can’t hurt anything.
     
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  15. Hedi Mitchell

    Hedi Mitchell Supreme Member
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    Joh even a tiny sliver of glass in that area could cause pain. Once when kid my brother had similar issue with his hand. Doctor opened it open in the office ( I was outside the door and would bite my hand every time he hollered) and there was and embedded goat head ... name for a large sticker from the grass outside . Just a piece of it caused him such misery. So could be anything moving around in there.
     
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