Dr. Stuart Honick - Podiatric Medicine and Surgery

Problems with your little toes: Your little toes help to balance and control your body when you move forward. As your foot flattens, the toes bend to grip the ground. They then straighten acting like levers to help push your foot, so you can walk, run, or dance. Hammertoes are little toes that buckle or curl under. Overtime, these toes may hurt and make movement more difficult.

In general, the term hammertoe is described as a buckling of any of the toe joints. Joints at the end of the toe, as well as the joint near the ball of the foot may be affected. Toe joints usually curl because of muscle imbalance or tight tendons. Hammertoes vary in severity and the number of the joints and toes involved.

Physical Examination: Dr. Honick will examine all your toes, testing whether or not buckled joints can be moved. Your feet also will be inspected for any skin changes. Corns often form between the curled toes or on top of buckled joints where the shoes rub. X-rays will be taken of the curled toe to show the amount of deformity. X-rays may also show whether or not the joint is affected by arthritis.

1. Flexible hammertoe: Here you can straighten a flexible hammertoe with your fingers. Although they look painful, flexible hammertoes may not hurt.

2. Rigid hammertoe: A rigid hammertoe can not be moved even with the fingers. Rigid joints may cause pain and distort foot movement. This may put extra stress on the ball of the foot causing a callus.

Treating Hammertoes: If your symptoms are mild, changing shoes may be all the treatment that you need. Using a spacer pad that holds your toes straight may also help. Cushioning corns or calluses with padding may also be used. If your symptoms are severe, surgery may be needed. The type of procedure often depends on whether your toe joints are flexible or rigid.

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