Morton's Neuroma

[livingwith]

I woke up one morning about 1 1/2 years ago with a toe so swollen that I couln’t bend or move it. When I walk on that foot, it feels like it’s broken. A couple months later, I broke down and got x-rays..followed by about 4 more sets of x-rays. All showed no fractures.
I was referred to a podiatrist, who gave me ridiculous amounts of ibuprophen, and 2 sets of cortisone shots. Then I got an MRI which showed the covering of my tendons to be swollen. After a number of blood tests showe...Read the full article

[StephJoy]

Yes, it sounds like you have a Morton's Neuroma. I thought for sure I had a broken toe until, like you, my X-Rays came back fine- showing no fractures. My surgical podiatrist is unsure as to what causes a Morton's Neuroma. He diagnosed mine in April 2008, and I just had surgery on Thursday (8/28/08). I am young (31) and am not interested in messing around with foot pain. He tried the novacaine shot and the cortisone/steriod-type shot. Neither were very helpful (plus, they hurt like the dickens to have injected, and I now have a sun-sensitive spot on my foot that I will have to treat with sunscreen for the rest of my life). He suggested the orthotics, but honestly I am not interested in wearing ugly shoes that only have a 30-40% chance of helping me with my MN. My doc said that surgery for me would have a 90% success rate. The surgery has been VERY PAINFUL. I am on day four post-op and can hardly walk. However, I think I made the right decision. I have a follow-up appointment to have the bandage removed this Wednesday. The doc said I would need three weeks to recover. Hope this helps!

From hearing your story, I am thankful that my doctor was able to diagnose the problem rapidly (my pain began in November, but I first saw the doctor in April). Because I thought I had a broken toe, I'd even spent the holidays with my toes taped together for two weeks. :-) That just made the problem worse in a sense because it was drawing my attention to my toes.