Forefoot Pain / Metatarsalgia

Forefoot pain or metatarsalgia is a broad term to describe pain in the area between arch and the toe, which is usually caused by repetitive overload from abnormal forefoot loading patterns. Forefoot is made up of small bones, muscles, and soft tissue and the pain may vary in nature and location depending on which specific anatomical structure is injured. The common diagnoses of forefoot pain are capsulitis, plantar plate injury and intermetatarsal bursitis.

Symptoms include:

Pain, swelling, stiffness

Aggravating Factors:

• Excessive forefoot loading
• Prominent metatarsal head
• Poor footwear
• Increase in activity, (and/or decrease in recovery)
• Poor biomechanics (ankle equinus)

Assessment :

The podiatrists at toe-tal will diagnose the condition through a biomechanical assessment and go through all the necessary treatments listed below to help get you on the right path.

Treatment – It is important to follow a rehabilitation program so your injury doesn’t reoccur.

1. REST until all pain has resolved (could become permanent damage) – talk to Podiatrist about when you can return to activity (will be gradual and initially activity may be modified)
2. Padding to distribute the weight on the forefoot
3. Metatarsal domes depending on the diagnosis
4. Correct biomechanics
5. Footwearwith cushioning through the forefoot  – (talk to the podiatrist at toe-tal about what footwear suits your foot best)
6. Orthotic therapy