Foot injuries

Each of your feet has 26 bones, 33 joints, and more than 100 tendons, muscles, and ligaments. As a result, many health problems can affect you. Among the most common are:

• Bunions: Hard, painful mass in the big toe joint
• Corns and calluses: Thickening of the skin from friction or pressure
• Plantar Warts: Warts on the sole of the foot
• Fall of the arch: Also known as flat foot

Inadequate shoes often cause these problems. Age and being overweight also increase the chances of foot problems.

Injuries to the toes, feet, or ankles most commonly occur during:

• Sports and recreational activities.
• Work-related tasks.
• Work or projects at home.

In children, most injuries to the toes, feet, or ankles occur during sports, play, or falls. The risk of injury is higher in jumping sports, such as basketball, or in sports with a rapid change of direction, such as soccer or football. Any injury to a bone near a joint could injure a child's growth plate (physis), and needs to be evaluated.

Certain athletes, such as dancers, gymnasts, or soccer or basketball players, have an increased risk of injuries to the toes, feet, or ankles. Older adults are at greater risk for injuries and fractures, as muscle mass and bone strength ( osteopenia ) are lost with age. They also have more problems with vision and balance, which increases their risk of injury. Most minor injuries heal on their own. Home treatment is usually all that is needed to relieve symptoms and promote healing.

Overuse injuries occur when too much stress is exerted on a joint or other tissue, often by "overdoing" an activity or by repeating the same activity over and over again. Overuse injuries include:

Retrocalcaneal bursitis , which is inflammation of the bursa. This condition causes swelling and tenderness in the back of the heel and ankle. The pain usually gets worse when wearing shoes and doing an activity, and improves during rest.

Achilles tendinitis , which is the degeneration of soft tissues in and around the Achilles tendon that connects the calf muscles to the heel bone. Stress fracture , which is a very thin fissure in the bone .

Plantar fasciitis , which is an inflammation of the plantar fascia , a broad, flat ligament at the bottom of the foot that extends from the front of the heel to the base of the toes, and helps maintain the arch of the foot. Metatarsalgia, which is pain in the front of the foot or forefoot.