Arthritis In The Ball Of My Foot [Causes, Symptoms & Best Treatment]

Most Common Foot Arthritis Areas:

The Big Toe:

• Big toe joint arthritis is very common, it is most common in men 30 to 50 or older.
• It can also happen in women, but women are more likely to get midfoot arthritis.
• Big toe joint arthritis does not always need surgery, it can be greatly relieved with good orthotics good shoes.
• Click on the above link to see some treatment options.

Arthritis In Ball Of Foot:

• Arthritis in the ball the foot may occur secondary to a condition called metatarsalgia.
• This is a very common problem that occurs in people with too much pressure to the bottom of the foot.
• Arthritis gradually happens as the cartilage of the ball the foot wears away.
• Click on the above link to see if this is something that may be going on with you.

The Mid Foot:

• Midfoot arthritis is very common, these types of problems occur when there is too much stress through the middle of the foot.
• This happens in people who are on their feet throughout their life, and are carrying a increased amount of weight.
• It is also more likely to occur on hard surfaces, and labor jobs.
• This is most likely to start occurring in people who are 30 to 50 years old.

The Top Of The Foot:

• Top of the foot arthritis, is similar treatment for arthritis.
• As you can see in this picture there is a bone spur and uneven bone formation that can occur.
• This can irritate against the top of the shoe, irritating nerves and the skin.
• It may feel like you have a lump on the top or middle of your foot.
• This results in aching and tingling pain.

The Subtalar Joint:

• This is a joint that does not get a lot of attention!
• Yet we see many many people with this is the main source of their pain.
• If you have pain along the outside and bottom of your ankle, this may be the subtalar joint.
• There are also many tendons and ligaments around this area that could be causing pain.

The Ankle Joint:

• The ankle joint is probably the most attention grabbing joint of the foot and ankle.
• It is very common to get a sprained ankle or a more severe ankle injury.
• If not rehabbed properly, it is possible for the ankle joint to develop arthritis, spur formation or increased pain.
• We do see many patients whose ankles have gotten worse, and continue to get worse as time goes on.
• Make sure you don’t let this happen to you, see a podiatristas soon as you can and seek treatment.

What Is Arthritis?

Arthritis refers to any irritation of the joint. It does not specify what type of arthritis you are dealing with, as there are many different types of arthritis possible.

• The most common causes in the ball of the foot are: Osteoarthritis, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Traumatic Arthritis & Gout.
• Rheumatoid arthritis effects both feet equally & many of the joints feel slow and aching. Rheumatoid arthritis is a systemic disease.
• Osteoarthritis is common in hammertoes, especially if the hammer toe becomes rigid.
• Traumatic arthritis can occur if there has been a previous stress fracture.
• Gout appears almost exclusively in the big toe joint only; if it does not look like this, consider something else.
• If these sound like you, follow the treatment link, otherwise consider the 4 major non-arthritis causes of ball of the foot pain.

Arthritis in the ball of the foot is possible, but if you are experiencing slow and aching pain, you are most likely experiencing a condition known as metatarsalgia or 2nd metatarsal overload syndrome.

Skip To:

The Ball Of The Foot Arthritis Treatment Guide.

Non-Arthritis Causes:

Capsulitis:

• This is inflammation of the joints in the ball of the foot.
• This presents as an aching pain that gets worse with increased standing and activity.
• This most commonly occurs at the second metatarsal phalangeal joint, it is due to overuse and injury to the capsule and tendons.

Metatarsalgia:

• This is generalized pain in the ball of the foot. This is due to biomechanics overloading the front of the foot.
• This is a term used to cover all of the ball of the foot problems.
• Treating this condition should make most of the ball of the foot problems feel better.

Morton’s Neuroma:

• This is an aching, burning and throbbing pain in between the 3rd and 4th MPJ joints.
• This can result secondary to a nerve impingement in the bulb foot.
• This is a very common problem that we see frequently.

Metatarsal stress fracture:

• This pain appears runners or people who put a lot of pressure on there feet.
• This almost always happens after a period of inactivity, followed by heavy duty training or work for a few days or weeks.
• Stress fractures occur as there is too much pressure and repetitive loading of the metatarsal bones.
• This is a very common problem that can take 6 to 8 weeks to get better with the correct treatment.

Plantar Plate Pain:

• The planter plate is a structure that holds the bottom of the metatarsal phalangeal joints together.
• It is possible that this become stretched out in tears over time.
• This can eventually lead to crossover toes, especially the second toe crossing over the big toe.
• This causes pain at the bottom of the second metatarsal phalangeal joint, the third metatarsal phalangeal joint and the fourth metatarsal phalangeal joint most commonly.

Hammertoe pain:

• A hammertoe is the curvature or contractor of the toes.
• This happens due to an imbalance of the tendons anchoring into the toe.
• There are three types of hammer toes.
• These are called hammertoe, the claw toe, and the mallet toe.