Sesamoiditis Injury - Causes, Treatment & Prevention
Located under the head of the first metatarsal bone ( or big toe joint are two
, possibly three or four, small bones. These are about the size of your 'pinky' fingernail and float in the tendon of a small muscleTheir purpose is to protect the first metatarsal head from injury and to absorb shock. Sesamoid bones can also be found in other areas of the body where considerable pressure develops, such as in your wrist and knees.
* Causes
The main causes of sesamoiditis are excessive running, dancing ( as in ballet, aerobics, country and western dance) combined with the wearing of tight shoes.
Its caused by anything you do repeatedly that causes you to pound on the ball of your foot while wearing shoes in which the toe box is not wide enough.
Another cause is that you could simply have thin, bony feet with insufficient fat padding on the sole that wont stand up to all the pounding that they receive in daily living.
* Symptoms
The sesamoids can become bruised, inflamed or even fractured if the initial pain and irritation is ignored and physical activity is continued. It can feel rather as though a pebble has permeated your foot.
In terms of knowing when you have injured your sesamoids a good test is to bend your toes up and back towards you. Now take your thumb and push up hard just under your first metatarsal head.
If this caused you to scream 'ouch' or some other expletive, then you have either bruised or broken your bones!
* Treatment
Your feet will almost certainly feel a lot better immediately after you take off your narrow shoes and rub them a bit.
If the pain is severe then use an ice treatment, by placing your foot on an ice bag on and off for five to ten minutes at a time. Repeat this for approximately three to four cycles.
Rest your foot as often as possible as well.
For more conservative treatment, a wider and stiffer shoe is recommended. This will assist in restricting the range of motion in the toe area.
You may also wish to consider padded inserts to cushion your forefoot.
* Prevention
If you are very active, then focus on choosing the appropriate footwear. This should be something comfortable and not too narrow (unless you are a ballerina) where you will have no choice as to shoe type)
If you suffer from a bony foot then add the appropriate padding in the forefoot area and buy shoes with appropriate padding.
Sesamoiditis as a condition actually responds very well to a change in in shoe environment.
If the pain does not respond to home measures, a foot specialist may want to give steroid injections to relieve the pain. Your doctor may also decide to make a custom orthotic in order to shift the excess weight away from the ball of your foot.
This is a complex area and this article has just only begun to cover the main issues in the causes, treatment and prevention of Sesamoiditis.
Do investigate and read further to obtain the full picture of this complex condition.
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