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Broken Toe Questions

jetskrjetskr
in General Training Discussions

I'm not sure exactly how I did this. There isn't a moment that sticks out but hrough training for IMAZ my toes were looking bad but it never hurt while I was walking or running.  A month after the race I went skiing in Wisconsin, not the best but a great get away over New Years, and since then my toes have been a lot worse. Specifically the toe next to my big toe and my pinky toe. The one next to my big toe has been getting better and the color is returning to normal. However, my pinky toe is getting worse. 

This last week it was getting hard to put my bike shoes on due to the swelling, but still no pain while walking/running/biking. This week the swelling and discoloring is pretty bad and after an attempt to buddy tape it’s hurting to walk.  Some deft Googling tells me that there isn’t much a Dr. can do and that RICE and buddy taping are the way to go. Is this a case of don’t believe what you read or is there really not much they do?

It’s partly frustrating to have this but I’m still not recovered from IMAZ and this will force me to stand down and fully recover.

 

Comments

  • Coach PatrickCoach Patrick
    Not a dr, but no running for now. Swim (no flip turns) and bike only...give it like 3-4 weeks of no running....

    Anyone else?

    P
  • Michele CellaiMichele Cellai

    Not sure if I missed someting here, but did you ever have an x-ray?

    I find it hard to believe that all of your toes are fractured and you have no pain, never did, just swelling.

    I think that you need to get in and be seen by soemone specializing in feet and endurance athletes. The podistrist I see treats athletes and I respect it when he makes a suggestion. That said, an ortho my be the answer. Seems like you have a neurovascular issue possibly.

  • jetskrjetskr

    Hey Michele,

    I haven't had an x-ray but it wasn't all of my toes. Two were discolored around the knuckles and there is pain to the touch but not when walking/running. Right now it’s only the pinky toe that’s any bother and the other one is returning to normal.

     

    The pinky is deformed, swollen, and painful to the touch. I’ve been icing and have it taped to the toe next to it which has helped. From all of my searching on the interwebs most people are saying that there is little more that a Dr. can do for it. I guess what I’m asking is to verify that. Is that really all a Dr can do for a toe break/strain/injury?

     

    Thanks Coach! I’ll stand down on the running and post something in the how do I adjust my schedule threads.

     

  • Leigh BoyleLeigh Boyle
    Posted By Jeff Linkus on 21 Jan 2010 12:05 PM

    Hey Michele,

    I haven't had an x-ray but it wasn't all of my toes. Two were discolored around the knuckles and there is pain to the touch but not when walking/running. Right now it’s only the pinky toe that’s any bother and the other one is returning to normal.

     

    The pinky is deformed, swollen, and painful to the touch. I’ve been icing and have it taped to the toe next to it which has helped. From all of my searching on the interwebs most people are saying that there is little more that a Dr. can do for it. I guess what I’m asking is to verify that. Is that really all a Dr can do for a toe break/strain/injury?

     

    Thanks Coach! I’ll stand down on the running and post something in the how do I adjust my schedule threads.

     



    Hey Jeff, I'm going to second Michele on this. See a podiatrist asap. Words like deformed, swollen and painful to the touch are your red flags. At the very least you need x-rays to see what you're actually dealing with instead of speculating that I may or may not have a fracture. Depending on what's going on and if there are in fact multiple breaks, you may very well require some immobilization or a walking boot for a period of time to promote healing.

     

    Do it soon. Foot injuries are usually cranky and slow to heal and unfortunately if there is a fracture and it does not heal, it's the kind of thing that will be problematic for life on bony and vascular level. image

  • Michele CellaiMichele Cellai
    Here's the thing- IMAZ was in November. You are correct that fractures cause pain, swelling, bruising. But depending on the toe, some folks recover in 2 weeks. Fracture healing is complete at 6 weeks. Months of ongoing swelling and discoloration, some pain- that is not normal. But you mentioned 3 different toes- 2, 3, and 5 (big toe being #1 and counting outward). If all were broken at once- you would know.

    How long did you stand down after IMAZ? Ski boots should have a nice cozy fit, not much movement. You might be sore with a fracture when skiing, but it would most likely be doable.

    Fractures usually are not treated- that is correct. EXCEPT if the fracture extends into the joint space. Sounds like you are talking about where the bones of the foot (metatarsals) meet the toe bones (phalanges). A lot can happen in that area. I am not an alarmist. I tend to be very "Ah- it'll get better". But 2 months? Maybe it is lack of downtime. So stand down and see if the pounding of running was part of the issue.
  • jetskrjetskr
    Sometimes it’s easier to provide others advise than listen to it yourself. Really, if someone else were to ask me all this I’d probably tell them exactly what you guys did. I didn't stand down very long after IMAZ and am taking myself out of the January OS to get a better mental state and the toes healed.

    The toes bothering me are 2 and 5. 2 is healing, I think, but 5 is still swelling and tender. I have a Dr. appointment for a week from Wednesday to find out the details and know for sure what’s going on.
  • Michele CellaiMichele Cellai
    Jeff- what came out of all this? Are you better?
  • jetskrjetskr

    Hey Michele,

    So sorry I didn't get back after seeing the Dr.  Thanks for following up!  February ended up getting the better of me but I'm working on getting back into everything.  After some x-rays the Dr concluded that the toe wasn't broken but probably was at one time and that I had a taylor's bunoin.  So the toe and bunion were just really inflamed and I ended up in a boot for a couple weeks to let them calm down.

    Since then I've been paying a lot more attention to how all of my shoes fit and have noticed that my bike shoes and old running shoes (now worn running errands instead or miles) are rubbing pretty heavily on the outter edge of my feet.  I've already purchaced new running shoes and am going for new bike shoes this weekend.

    In the mean time I started biking and running again last week and am starting OS week 2 this week.

  • Michele CellaiMichele Cellai
    So glad you got an answer and treatment. It's early in the year. You will be ready to go soon enough. Have a great season
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