Hammertoes: Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment Options

Leading the Way to Healthier Feet and Ankles in Kansas

Kansas City Foot and Ankle and Heel Pain Center of Kansas City is host to seven doctors/surgeons of podiatry in four offices in North Kansas City, Downtown Kansas City, Lee's Summit, MO, where the doctors see patients daily for numerous foot and ankle problems, such as hammertoes.

Our doctors are experienced, skilled, compassionate, licensed, and devoted to their patients having the healthiest feet and ankles possible.

Our doctors want to explain these toe contractures and the recommended treatments.

What Is a Hammertoe?

If your second, third, or fourth toe begins to bend at the middle joint, you may have a hammertoe.

• Your toe soon resembles a hammer.
• The toe tip begins to turn downward.
• The second joint begins to turn upward.

A hammertoe can cause an imbalance of your foot, which in turn causes constant pressure on your foot, creating corns and calluses at the top of the deformed joint. 

Kansas City Foot and Ankle and Heel Pain Center of Kansas City, located in North Kansas City, Downtown Kansas City, Lee's Summit, MO, says hammertoes can become painful if not treated. 

Causes of a Hammertoe

Some conditions may cause you to develop a hammertoe, such as,

• Genetics/runs in the family
• Arthritis
• Muscle imbalance
• Ill-fitting shoes
• Neuromuscular disease
• Trauma/injury

If you continue to walk on a hammertoe without treatment, you will lose the toe's flexibility. You will still experience pain when walking, which tends to worsen. 

Hammertoe Treatments

• You can wear orthotics or custom-made shoe inserts.
• Take anti-inflammatory drugs or cortisone shots in the deformed joint.
• Taping toes can change the imbalanced muscles.
• Padding worn around the hammertoe lessens the pressure.
• Surgery is a common treatment option if the toes are severe and painful. 

A simple surgical procedure that takes a matter of minutes is a standard treatment option. One of our podiatry doctors/surgeons does this outpatient procedure under local anesthesia. 

Our doctor straightens the toe, thus eliminating the toe contracture. A few minute incisions are made around the toe. The tendons are rebalanced through the incision. You have a short recovery with short-term pain relief. You must wear a surgical shoe for protection while the toe heals. 

Need Call Today for Treatment of a Hammertoe

Please call our esteemed podiatrists at (816) 943-1111 at Kansas City Foot and Ankle and Heel Pain Center of Kansas City in any of our four offices in North Kansas City, Downtown Kansas City, Lee's Summit, MO, if you have hammertoes that need treatment.

Please call us for a consultation appointment for any foot and ankle issue you have, and don't neglect treatment, as the condition does not improve and worsens over time.