Hammer toe is a condition that affects the foot and can affect one toe or all of them. It causes the joint in the toe to protrude and will leave your toe bent at the joint. Your smaller toes appear to be curled permanently and your big toe may turn, leaving you with a protrusion out of the side of the foot. This can leave you with other issues, including bunions and your toes being squished together. If you have just one hammer toe, or several of your toes have been affected by this condition, read on for some treatments that could help you.
Toe Separator
A toe separator device may help straighten out your toes. It will help pull them back into position and prevent them from being squished. They may have gotten squished from wearing shoes that don't fit you properly, or shoes that cause your feet to be pushed forward, as with high heels. A toe separator can be worn daily underneath your socks without anyone knowing it's on you. If you cannot wear it daily, wear it at night when you sleep.
Wearing Different Shoes
Wearing shoes that fit your feet properly will also help you. Stop wearing shoes that squish your feet or that leave your toes without enough room in your shoes. Change your footwear so you are wearing shoes that fit your feet and offer you comfort and support at the same time. You should also wear shoes that have a low heel if you need to wear high heels, and stop wearing high heels over 2 inches. If you need a wider area for your toes, start buying shoes that are wide width.
Adding Shoe Inserts
Add shoe inserts to your shoes to help offer you comfort and extra support for your feet and your toes. Shoe inserts can be found at most big box stores, or you can be custom fitted for a pair of inserts by your podiatrist. The inserts can be moved from one shoe to another very easily, so you can always wear comfortable and supportive shoes.
Surgery
A last resort way of treating hammer toe is to have surgery. If you've tried everything your podiatrist has suggested and nothing is working to help your hammer toe, or your toes are worsening, you may need to have surgery to correct this issue. If your joints are not moving as easily as they once did, and the toes are now fixed into this position, surgery should be performed.
If you have hammer toes, you should get to the podiatrist for treatment. Leaving them in this condition will result in the need for surgery later down the road. Have this condition treated now.
For more information on hammer toe surgery, contact a professional near you.
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