Treating Corns Wrong Could Lead to Serious Problems

Deidre writes:  I tried to get rid of two corns, one on each of my second toes. First, by using a drugstore corn remover medication and then with a tca peel. Now both my toes are extremely darker than all the other toes (my toes look burnt) and the corns are still there. I now wear better shoes and i scrub it everyday, but nothing.

Dr. Nirenberg replies:

A corn on our toe or between our toes can be very painful, and can interfere with our ability to walk normally. However, corn remover products are not always the best solution and may, in fact, prove harmful.

When a corns forms on our toe it is usually the result of an abnormality or misalignment of the bones inside the toe. The bone under the area of the corn may be abnormal and may have a spur or some other kind of growth, or the toe itself may be bending (contracting) and you may have a mallet toe or hammertoe deformity. A deformity of the toe or misalignment of the bones causes pressure on the skin from within and rather than the skin breaking open, it toughens and forms the corn (to protect it). A hammertoe (or mallet toe) is the number one cause of corns on the toes. Often patients may have several hammertoes, but not all of them will have a corn.

Corns can also form in response to pressure from outside our foot, such as when a tight-fitting shoe rubs on the toe. Again, the skin will toughen and the corn will protect the skin from the opening.

Many drugstore remedies for corns use a medicated solution to soften and remove the corn. These “medications” are usually an acid that burns away the corn. Putting acid on a corn (or burning the corn) will make the corn look burnt, as you describe. The problem is, if you use too much acid it can burn through the skin. In my podiatry practice, I have even seen patients put on so much acid that it burned to bone and/or caused infection or gangrene. Some patients have needed the toe amputated. Essentially, the acid does not stop after destroying the corn and goes through the good tissue, resulting in gangrene or infection in the toe or worse, the bone.

The other problem with using these remedies is that the patient is not addressing the corn’s cause: the bone. At best, the acid is briefly alleviating the corn. Without addressing the bone beneath the corn, the corn is likely to return. For all these reasons, I advise patients never to use drugstore medications for corns.

Whether your corns are due to hammertoes, mallet toes, spurs or other bone problems, you do not have to live with them.

The best treatment for corns is to pad them with moleskin, wear loose fitting shoes and have a good podiatrist examine your foot. The podiatrist will take an x-ray and you will immediately see how the bone is causing the painful corn or corns. From there, the doctor will explain the treatment options for the corn.

Additional Information:

Wikipedia

Mayo Clinic

Photos

Related Posts

Painful Hammertoes & Fungal Toenails

Eighty percent of people, at some point in their lives, have a foot problem that requires medical care.

However, many people let their problems persist and worsen untreated.

Here is a list of the most common foot problems I see in my practice that you can watch for to ensure the health of your feet.

Heel Pain

Heels get a bad rap. The dictionary defines a heel as a dishonorable person, and the term “Achilles’ heel” refers to a fatal weakness.

The reality is your heels are quite strong, though no other part of your foot malfunctions more. Heel pain is the number one reason people come see me.

Heel pain can be very complicated and may have a variety of causes, including a stress fracture, pinched nerve, bone cyst, or tumor.

Most patients with heel pain believe they have a heel spur.

This may be part of the problem, but the most common cause of heel pain—whether or not a heel spur is also present—is inflammation of the largest ligament in our foot, the plantar fascia. In doctor-speak, this problem is called plantar fasciitis.

 Treatments for plantar fasciitis range from custom-made arch supports (called orthotics), to simple stretching exercises, to the revolutionary, high-tech shockwave treatment. 

Nerve Problems

 Burning, numbness, tingling, or shooting pain in your feet or ankles often means something is wrong with a nerve.

Nerve problems are common in feet, so if you have one, don’t get nervous. Most of the time, the treatment is relatively simple.

The main nerve problems I see are:

• Morton’s Neuroma

Not to be confused with Morton’s Steakhouse—which may cause a full stomach—Morton’s neuroma causes cramping, tingling (a feeling of pins and needles), burning, or shooting pain in the toes or ball of your foot.

A neuroma is a painful growth on a nerve that forms when the nerve becomes irritated.

Treatment for neuromas consists of using a special arch support, called an orthotic, and sometimes injections are needed. Surgery is rarely necessary.   

• Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome

Almost everyone has heard of carpal tunnel syndrome in the hands, but few people realize the same problem occurs in our feet.

Tarsal tunnel syndrome may cause burning, tingling, shooting pain, or a cramping sensation in your foot.

The good news is that there is a light at the end of this tunnel. Tarsal tunnel syndrome is often easily treated with orthotics, injections or a short, outpatient procedure.   

• Neuropathy

Neuropathy literally means a “disease of the nerves,” and it affects millions of people each year. Persons with neuropathy often experience loss of sensation, burning, tingling, or shooting pain.

The number one body part affected by neuropathy is the feet. Persons with diabetes are those most afflicted with neuropathy, but it also occurs in people with thyroid problems, vitamin deficiencies, alcoholism, and some types of arthritis.

Neuropathy has many treatment options and some people might opt for a new, somewhat controversial, procedure that involves surgically freeing up the nerves to restore normal sensation to their feet.

Arthritis of the Foot and Ankle

Degenerative joint disease, osteoarthritis, or just plain old “Arthur” is a deterioration of the joints between our bones.

When Arthur visits people’s feet or ankles, many believe they just have to live with it. This is far from the truth. The reality is podiatrists have many techniques to alleviate arthritis, including a high-tech, tiny arthroscopic camera that can remove arthritis from sore ankles.    

Nail Problems

I am not talking about rusty nails on your garage floor, but ingrown toenails and fungal toenails. Ingrown toenails occur when the edge of the nail grows deep into the flesh of the toe.

These are painful and can become infected. Fortunately, a brief, in-office technique can alleviate ingrown toenails, often permanently.

Fungal toenails are another story, and usually require a long course of medication.

Bunions

These are protrusions of bone or bumps that form on the inside of the foot at the joint at the base of the big toe.

If you wear ill-fitting shoes, don’t blame them for bunions—blame your parents. Bunions are inherited. However, poor footwear can contribute to the formation of a bunion.

Numerous conservative treatments, such as trying wider shoes or foot soaks, can alleviate painful bunions, though getting rid of them requires a short, outpatient surgical procedure.

Other Big Toe Problems

• Hallux Rigidus

With hallux rigidus, the big toe may look normal; however the inside of the joint at the base of the big toe is deteriorated and painful.

Sometimes the big toe won’t bend. Like bunions, simple treatments can lessen the pain, but in on some cases surgery is necessary.

• Gout

Known as the “rich man’s disease,” gout doesn’t just affect the rich. Gout is a type of arthritis that most often occurs in the joint at the base of the great toe, causing redness, swelling, and pain.

Some patients have said the pain was so severe that they couldn’t stand the bed sheet resting on their toe. Other patients describe less intense symptoms.

Gout occurs when too much uric acid is present in your body. Uric acid is a natural chemical that your body manufactures, and you ingest in certain foods, like pork, beer, or liver.

Treatment consists of altering your diet to limit the amount of uric acid you ingest, and if that isn’t enough, medication is prescribed.

Corns and Callouses

Corns have nothing to do with plants that grow ears. Painful corns (and callouses) are a build-up of hard, dead skin that often occurs due to an abnormal bony prominence or a bone out of position.

Corns occur on toes and callouses are found on the bottom of the foot.

Contracted toes (hammertoes) cause corns to form, and callouses form when a bone or bones are out of position. Treatment of a corn or callous depends on what is wrong with the bone underneath them.

Final Thoughts on Common Foot Problems

These are the top foot and ankle offenders, but the list of problems I see in my practice is endless. If you have foot or ankle pain or another problem, the best thing you can do is have it checked by a podiatrist.

Related Posts

28 year old woman with a bunion and hammertoe

Not everyone goes to the doctor when they have a medical problem, and when many people do go, they don’t always seek out the best trained doctor for their problem. Today, medicine is very specialized. There are entire medical journals and textbooks for every part of the body: head, stomach, veins, and yes, feet. That is where podiatrists come in.

What is a Podiatrist?
Podiatrists or Doctors of Podiatric Medicine (DPM) are physicians who specialize in the treatment of foot and ankle problems. Most podiatrists have spent at least three or four years studying the basic sciences in a university or college after graduating high school, then studied four more years at a school of podiatric medicine, and then most go on to do foot and ankle residencies for two to three additional years or in some cases, even more.

What Kinds of Problems Do Podiatrist Treat?
Podiatrists treat all problems related to the foot or ankle, and the length is endless. However, the more common problems I see are heel pain, arch pain, ingrown toe nails, bunions (bumps on the inside of the big toe), hammertoes (bent toes), flat feet, foot or ankle arthritis, fungal toe nails, sores (ulcers), infections, sprains and fractures, ankle pain or weakness, nerve problems and neuropathy (numbness, burning, or tingling), shin splints, gout, athlete’s foot, sports medicine and diabetics foot problems, children’s foot problems, swelling or discoloration, plantar warts, dry skin, and moles, cysts or tumors.

When Should I Call a Podiatrist?
Some aches and pains in our feet or ankles may go away in a day in a two; others do not, and that is when you need to go to a podiatrist. Many people who see me for a painful foot or ankle have had pain for several days or weeks, but some have been limping around for several months or even over a year! Pain is the body’s way of telling us something is wrong. Don’t ignore it.

Some people with foot or ankle problems never have pain. For example, diabetics who have neuropathy (a deterioration of the nerves of their feet) may fracture a bone or develop an infection or sore on their foot and not have any pain. Recently, I had a patient with diabetes come to see me complaining of a small sore on the bottom of their foot; an x-ray revealed a needle inside the foot. Because the patient had very little feeling in their feet they didn’t know they had stepped on anything sharp.

In all patients foot problems can quickly become serious, but diabetics are especially at risk. It is not unusual for diabetics who don’t seek podiatric care promptly to develop gangrene and need a toe or the whole foot amputated. Prompt treatment is essential. All diabetics or anyone else with decreased feeling in their feet needs to have any foot or ankle problem checked by a podiatrist immediately.

Some people may notice one foot swelling or flattening. Diabetics and others with neuropathy may not have pain, however these are the people most at risk for a particularly serious problem called charcot arthropathy. In charcot arthropathy the bones of the foot weaken and slide out of position and may actually break through the bottom of the foot, leading to infection and even amputation. For other patients, a rapid flattening of one foot may mean the main tendon holding up their foot has torn.

It is a good guideline for anyone who notices swelling, redness, increased warmth or a change in the shape of his or her foot or ankle to see a podiatrist promptly.

Lastly, a podiatrist should check any lumps, bumps, cysts, tumors or moles on your foot or ankles. These problems are usually harmless, but occasionally they can be cancer and life threatening.

Final Thoughts on Foot and Ankle Pain
The most common complaint I hear from my patients is, “I should’ve come to see you sooner.” If you have a foot or ankle problem, the best advice I can give you is, don’t wait for it to hopefully go away—it may not.

To have Dr. Nirenberg look at your foot or ankle problem, visit Friendly Foot Care.

Related Posts