Big Toe Joint Pain and Gout

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Toe Joint PainGout is a very painful inflammatory arthritis that causes big toe joint pain in approximately 50% of the cases.  Although it can affect other joints it is typically seen in the toe or other parts of the foot or ankle.  Men are affected by it much more than women, although women are more susceptible after menopause.  This painful condition is caused by a build up of uric acid in the joints.

Uric acid is created when the body breaks down purines.  In most healthy people this is filtered out of the body through the kidneys with no problems.  In people who suffer from gout, the body does not properly filter the purines which in turn creates sharp crystals that then form around the affected joint causing big toe joint pain.

The big toe joint pain affiliated with gout is described as being one of the most intense pains known to man.  This condition usually forms over night and the sufferer becomes aware of it when he or she attempts to step out of bed.  Not only is the joint painful but it is red, swollen and often very hot to the touch.  The pressure of a sock, shoe and even a bed sheet is sometimes unbearable.

Who suffers from gout?  As stated earlier males suffer more than females, and they are often overweight, have high blood pressure, high cholesterol and drink alcohol.  They often eat foods that have high concentrations of purines.  Examples of these foods would be sardines, salmon, herring and liver.  Certain medications can also cause gout.  Once someone suffers from an attack they are more likely to have another attack in the future.  The duration of a gout attack without treatment can last from a few days to weeks.  Recurrent attacks can cause deformity of the affected joint as well as continuous toe joint pain.  There are medications that can be prescribed to help reduce the amount of purines in the body.

Other treatments that can assist with big toe joint pain and gout is the application of heat or ice, and over the counter aspirin or ibuprofen.  Not drinking alcohol and losing weight will help to reduce further attacks, as will ensuring that your cholesterol levels are kept in check.  I also recommend www.CureYourGout.com. This wonderful book has helped thousands of gout sufferers using natural methods to combat this sometimes debilitating medical condition.

As severe as the big toe joint pain is that gout can produce, you need to take action to ensure that you do not have repeat episodes.

10 facts about Toe Joint Pain

  1. Ill fitting shoes: The 1st place to look when suffering from toe joint pain is ill fitting or poor quality shoes. Simple solution but often people don’t look for the obvious.
  2. New or existing injuries: Often even slight knocks to vunerable areas can cause pain short term.
  3. Ingrown toenails: This can be extremely painful with the toenail piercing the outer skin and often causing infection.
  4. Gout: In over 50% of long term toe joint pain, gout, or gouty arthritis,  is the culprit, even in the young. Often thought of as an older persons ailment, it can occur at almost any age.
  5. Arthritis: Osteoarthritis which is the “wear and tear” or “overuse injury” arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, a reaction caused when the immune system stops functioning properly.
  6. Corns and callouses: Though often present due to arthritis, they can form ulcers which in turn become infected and cause more toe joint pain.
  7. Bunions: A common complaint that was thought to be caused by poor footwear, but is often hereditary.
  8. Claw foot: This is a deformity of the toes in which the toe joint nearest the foot is bent upward and the other toe joints are bent downward. The toe looks like a claw. Claw toes are not usually dangerous, but they may cause severe toe joint pain. It can be the first sign of a more serious disease of the nervous system.
  9. Other toe abnormalities: Hammer toes, mallet toes, trigger toes and other names for similar afflictions.
  10. You can treat toe joint pain from home without exspensive medical bills.

Causes of Toe Joint Pain

Toe joint pain is often caused by gout.  First off, what is gout and what is the cause? It is a form of arthritisGout Image that is caused from having an over abundance of uric acid in the joints. When the body breaks down purines, the substance that is left is the uric acid. Instead of the acid dissolving in the blood and passing through the kidneys to be expelled in the urine, the uric acid builds up and sharp crystals form and collect around the joints. The end result of this is swelling and joint pain.

But gout is just one of the types of arthritis that affect the feet. There is also Rheumatoid Arthritis, Hallux Rigidus, Ankle Arthritis and Osteoarthritis, which is a type of wear and tear arthritis. Gout is most common in people who drink alcohol, have high cholesterol, or are overweight. But I’m a mild alcohol drinker, my cholesterol levels are great and I’m not overweight. So why me? you may ask. Well just an inability for your body to handle the uric acid is enough to put you in the danger zone. There are also medications that are prone to inflame gout,  and they include: fluid pills, niacin, which is a b-complex vitamin, low doses of aspirin, cyclosporine, and some cancer treatment drugs. All increasing the chance of toe joint pain.

When you are having toe joint pain, it affects your whole foot. It can be disabling and because it is in a joint that has to continuously bend and bear weight, it can cause severe pain. The best thing is to address these symptoms, as the sooner you do the sooner you will be able to get back to a normal life free from pain.

What kinds of food should you try to avoid which cause gout, the most common cause of toe joint pain? That would be meat extracts, shellfish such as shrimp and mussels, offal, gravies and dried legumes, to name just a few.  I found that most of the listed foods had no effect on me at all. But give me some red wine with red meat and the next morning I was in pain.

What are the gout friendly foods? These include some fruit and fruit juices, especially cherry juice, most of your vegetables, eggs, dairy products, and cereals. There are some natural remedies you could try , as I did, to reduce swelling and flare-ups, such as drinking water, ice the affected area, wrap a warm towel around the joint, and most important of all is change your diet, which will at least reduce the uric acid in your system. Importantly you need to act, as toe joint pain is no joke.

Toe Joint Pain – A Common Complaint

Toe joint Pain has become more prevalent during the 20th and 21st century. Lifestyle and dietary changes has seen more and more occurences in people of all ages and gender. The main cause of toe joint pain can be attributed to gout. Once known as “rich mans disease” or “the disease of kings” it now affects approximately 2% of the western population at some point in their lives. Other forms of arthritis can also be a major cause.

Due to the availability of quality footwear to the mainstream population, the incidence of hammertoe and other feet abnormalities are actually on the decrease. It has been found that many of the people diagnosed with these problems today have not acquired them but they are in fact hereditary.

Severe toe joint pain can be debilitating, cause headaches, hypertension, stomach disorders and in extreme cases depression. I suffered my 1st attack at the age of 19. My friends thought it was funny as “only old guys” get that.  I’ve had several episodes since, sometimes decades apart.

Whatever way you look at it, toe joint pain needs to be acted upon and is not something to be taken lightly.