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My Husband Is 54 Years Old, Healthy, He Takes No
Question: My husband is 54 years old, healthy, he takes no medications and has no chronic issues. His left foot started swelling a week ago, at first he had pain on top of his foot and it appeared to have a slightly blue knot on it-he has not hurt/injured it. The pain after several days now has moved to the bottom center of his foot at the base of his middle toes (still his foot). The discoloration on the top of his foot is red and almost appears like a rash. For approx. a week he has elevated, iced and taken Advil for the pain. We are puzzled...
Brief Answer:
Kindly asked to upload pictures- possible causes explained
Detailed Answer:
Hello and welcome to "Ask a Doctor" service,
Because of the skin changes on his foot, it would be very helpful to have a picture or two of his foot.
On the other hand, there are a few possible causes of the swelling, pain and bruise your husband is having on his left foot. One that needs to be ruled out is a metatarsal fracture. Metatarsal bones are the bones that constitute the foot and they may fracture even with minor trauma such as a twist, overuse, abrupt increase in activity, etc. Thus, even though your husband does not remember any trauma or injury to the foot, metatarsal bone fracture can still be a possible diagnosis.
It is important to have an x-ray of the foot to rule out a metatarsal fracture because sometimes immobilization of the foot or casting may be needed to help the bone ends meet and the fracture heal.
Other causes would be direct trauma in the area. Many times we do not remember to have been hit or have hit our foot against something and we become aware of the injury due to pain, swelling and even bruise.
Another rare but possible cause would be if there is an insect bite in the area. In this case, you should be able to identify the bite site. Rarely a skin infection may be the cause as well.
To conclude:
- it would be very helpful to have a picture or two of the foot so I can better evaluate why your husband is having these symptoms
- furthermore, your husband very likely will need a good physical examination and depending on the findings, he may need x-rays to rule out metatarsal fractures as the cause of his symptoms
- if a metatarsal fracture is ruled out then injury due to direct trauma or even an insect bite can be the cause and in these cases, no special treatment is needed but continue with the treatment he is already having R(rest) I(ice) C(control pain) E(elevation).
- in case of a skin infection antibiotics are needed, so having a picture is important to evaluate the rash
I hope this answers your query.
I remain at your disposal in case further medical assistance is needed.
Kind regards,
Dr. Antoneta Zotaj,
General and Family Physician
Kindly asked to upload pictures- possible causes explained
Detailed Answer:
Hello and welcome to "Ask a Doctor" service,
Because of the skin changes on his foot, it would be very helpful to have a picture or two of his foot.
On the other hand, there are a few possible causes of the swelling, pain and bruise your husband is having on his left foot. One that needs to be ruled out is a metatarsal fracture. Metatarsal bones are the bones that constitute the foot and they may fracture even with minor trauma such as a twist, overuse, abrupt increase in activity, etc. Thus, even though your husband does not remember any trauma or injury to the foot, metatarsal bone fracture can still be a possible diagnosis.
It is important to have an x-ray of the foot to rule out a metatarsal fracture because sometimes immobilization of the foot or casting may be needed to help the bone ends meet and the fracture heal.
Other causes would be direct trauma in the area. Many times we do not remember to have been hit or have hit our foot against something and we become aware of the injury due to pain, swelling and even bruise.
Another rare but possible cause would be if there is an insect bite in the area. In this case, you should be able to identify the bite site. Rarely a skin infection may be the cause as well.
To conclude:
- it would be very helpful to have a picture or two of the foot so I can better evaluate why your husband is having these symptoms
- furthermore, your husband very likely will need a good physical examination and depending on the findings, he may need x-rays to rule out metatarsal fractures as the cause of his symptoms
- if a metatarsal fracture is ruled out then injury due to direct trauma or even an insect bite can be the cause and in these cases, no special treatment is needed but continue with the treatment he is already having R(rest) I(ice) C(control pain) E(elevation).
- in case of a skin infection antibiotics are needed, so having a picture is important to evaluate the rash
I hope this answers your query.
I remain at your disposal in case further medical assistance is needed.
Kind regards,
Dr. Antoneta Zotaj,
General and Family Physician
Note: For further queries, consult a joint and bone specialist, an Orthopaedic surgeon. Book a Call now.
Above answer was peer-reviewed by :
Dr. Prasad
Answered by
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