3 Things you Need to Know about Neuromas

1. WE ARE ALL AT RISK.
We all have the propensity to form them. These lesions of the digital nerves on the bottom of the foot are directly related to environmental causes, such as tight fitting shoes, long hours on your feet every day, and even lack of tactile stimulation (such as massages). That being said, we are certain that everyone who walks on their feet are at risk to form this annoying and painful scenario. Therefore, you need to know if you actually have a neuroma in order to decide if treatment is in order. Pain, feeling of bunched up stocking, tingling and numbness to the toes. Worse in closed shoes. Feels better with massage. This sounds like a neuroma.

2. SURGERY IS NOT NEEDED.
All too often patients are deterred to see their doctor for reasons of fear. Fear drives the most powerful decisions, and is responsible for most things that are avoided. I can assure anyone reading this article that surgery is not needed for most neuromas. In fact, we are able to use a variety of ablation techniques, such as neurolytic injections, and radiofrequency ablation without an incision. These techniques help patients to avoid surgery, and can lead to excellent pain relief, with the replacement of numbness to the painful area. This is normal and is a good trade off for patients who are dealing with very symptomatic neuromas.

3. DIAGNOSIS IS PAINLESS.
Pain and discomfort are never acceptable. In fact, these are two of the sensations we try to avoid on a daily basis. Most times, whenever you seek aide from a physician, there are painful tests to be undertaken. At FFLC, we are able to calmly and painlessly diagnose many foot and ankle conditions, and have the equipment necessary to fully enhance the likelihood of a correct and timely diagnosis. Ultrasound, radiography, fluoroscopic imaging, and physical examination are readily accurate means to assure that we are correctly receiving the necessary information to treat your condition. Even if you want to delay any interventions at the time of your initial encounter, we can deliver a timely diagnosis so when it becomes more painful or if things need to become more invasive, we are ready to deliver the necessary treatments. So there are no reasons to avoid seeking an appointment today.


-Dr Timm