Do you have burning, tingling pain in the ball of your foot? If so, it is possible you have neuroma.  Neuroma is when nerves on the bottom of the foot become overgrown. When you step down on the foot, the bones press on the swollen nerve, causing the waves of burning, tingling, pain.  Neuromas occur commonly in the ball of the foot between the third and fourth toes. This special case is referred to as Morton’s neuroma. Dr. Reddy at First Coast Foot and Ankle Clinic has many different treatment options available for this problem:

• Fabricate and apply padding to the foot to prevent the bones from squeezing the nerve.
• Orthotics
• Cortisone injections - this will reduce the inflammation.
• Alcohol injections - if the above measures don’t work, this will destroy the bothersome nerve (neurolysis). Not 100% effective, though.
• Surgery - to cut out the nerve manually, in severe cases.
• Cryogenic neuroablation - a relatively new procedure with similar results to surgery but fewer complications and high patient satisfaction. Instead of destroying the nerve with chemicals, it is frozen.

High-heeled shoes aggravate neuromas. The toe box of a high-heeled shoe is usually tight, forcing all your weight down onto the ball of your foot. These two factors contribute to the swelling and irritation.  So ladies the next time you’re running aorund your office or in downtown Jacksonville with your girlfriends for a night out, if you start to feel a burning, tingling pain in your feeet you may want to consider different footwear.