Common Foot Problems in Seniors and How to Treat Them

I’ve been reading a lot lately about interesting gadgets to solve foot problems in seniors and it occurred to me that foot care is definitely important to older adults.

If improperly cared for, the muscles, ligaments, blood vessels, and nerves of the feet — along with the 26 bones and 33 joints on each foot — invite a host of problems. And according to Lifeline.Philips.com, it even contribute to a senior’s risk of falling.

Moreover, it is estimated that 75% of Americans experience foot pain in their lives. Ranging from short-term and painful annoyances to the total loss of ambulation, permanent disability, and social isolation, foot pain is undeniably common.

20 Common Foot Problems in Seniors and What Causes them

Although any number of other things can go wrong with seniors’ feet, these are the most common problems are:

1. Corns and Callouses

Corn and callouses are basically the development of dead, thick painful skin on the feet. While a corn is a painful, yellowish area of hard and dry skin, especially on the little toe, a callous is the same thing, but located on the heel or ball of the foot.

Unless seniors have crooked toes, the cause is usually shoes or even socks fitting too tight around the toes, loose and sliding shoes, or high heels. Beyond the continuous sliding in loose shoes, if patients have flat feet or do a lot of walking on concrete or some other hard surfaces, callouses can develop.

2. Bunions

In short, bunions are a bony growth at the base of the big toe (and possibly other toes) that over time causes misalignment of the toe.

Most bunions are metatarsus primus varus, where the first of the two metatarsal bones shifts outward and causes the second to bend inward. When the area at the base of the big toe becomes inflamed and tender, it is likely medial exostosis, while hallux valgus causes the big toe joint to shift so far inward that the second toe is forced to cross over the big toe.

Both heredity and ill-fitting shoes cause bunions.

3. In-grown Toenails

Toenails can grow painfully into the skin. Frequently worn open-toed shoes, fungal infections, and foot-related injuries can also lead to in-grown toenails.

4. Heel Pain

Heel pain is a pain that is present from the rear of the arch to the heel of the foot.

5. Arch Pain

Arch pain is caused by fallen arches (flat feet) or unusually high arches.

6. Hammer Toe

Hammer toes are joints that curl unnaturally leading to dislocation over time. It results in a curved toe that points down rather than outward. This condition may be painful when walking or stretching your foot, and you may not be able to wiggle your toe.

Like many foot conditions, mallet toe can be the result of genetics, footwear that doesn’t fit right, or other foot problems like high arches or bunions. Arthritis or a toe injury may also be the cause of a mallet toe.

7. Claw Toe

Claw toe is also known as claw foot. This occurs when your first toe joint points up and the second joint points down.

Older toes have a propensity toward curling into “claw toes” because of muscle imbalance. And seniors — especially older women — are prone to developing bunions which can sometimes cause enough pressure to push an adjacent toe (usually the toe next to the big toe) into a claw-like position.

This condition may or may not cause pain and discomfort, and it can be a sign of a more serious medical condition like rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, or cerebral palsy.

8. Flat Feet

Flat foot refers to the lack of arch in your foot when standing and the entire sole of the foot has contact with the floor when standing. Some people are genetically predisposed to having flat feet. They never develop much of an arch in their foot. This is normal and doesn’t cause any symptoms. Flat feet can also develop later in life. In fact most feet will get flatter to some extent.

This may cause pain and swelling on the inside of the ankle and foot. As the foot changes shape, there can also be pain on the outside of the foot.

The most common cause of painful flatfoot in adults is a problem with the posterior tibial tendon. (That’s a tendon that goes behind your ankle and attaches to the bones on the inside of your foot. It holds your arch up and provides support when your foot pushes off the ground.)

Wear and tear can cause the tendon to stretch our or develop tears over time.

9. Arthritis Pain

Arthritis can cause a range of pain and discomfort symptoms in the feet.

Basically, seniors suffering from Arthritis feel pain when move their feet. They have trouble moving, walking, or putting weight on it. Joint stiffness, warmth, or swelling is also common. More pain and swelling after you rest, such as sitting or sleeping.

10. Gout Pain

Gout is a condition that often affects your feet, especially in the big toe, because of too much uric acid in your body. The affected area may feel very painful. Some describe the pain as feeling like your foot is on fire.

Gout usually manifests in the big toe, seniors suffering from Gout may also experience gout attacks in your foot, ankle, or knees.

Acute gout attacks are characterized by a rapid onset of pain in the affected joint followed by warmth, swelling, reddish discoloration, and marked tenderness. The small joint at the base of the big toe is the most common site for an attack.

11. Diabetes Neuropathy

Diabetes can cause circulation problems, loss of feeling and ulcers that are very slow to heal.

Monitoring seniors’ feet for changes is a critical part of managing diabetes. This is because seniors may experience diabetic neuropathy, which is damage to the nerves because of unregulated high blood sugar.

Seniors may experience their feet tingling like pins and needles or other symptoms like loss of feeling or sensitivity in their feet or problems walking.

12. Morton’s neuroma

Morton’s neuroma is a benign growth the develops between the third and fourth toes.

This pain manifests as a lightning bolt or cramping sensation between or under a senior’s third and fourth toes may be the result of nerve inflammation, and it can be exacerbated if he/she does a lot of standing. It’s also called interdigital neuroma.

13. Sesamoiditis

Located in the forefoot, two sesamoid bones connect to the first metatarsal bone. Shoes that fit poorly can cause one or both of these bones to become inflamed or rupture. The pain and swelling can be severe enough to limit movement.

14. Stress Fracture

When combined with shoes light in padding, concussions (as when running on hard surfaces) can cause tiny, incomplete cracks in the bones of the forefoot. If a senior ignores sudden yet persistent pain in the bottom of his foot, especially below the second and third toe, full-blown fractures can ensue.

15. Achilles Tendonitis

Achilles tendonitis is an inflammation and pain in the tendon at the rear of the foot that connects to the calf muscle.

If a senior feels pain between a calf and heel, especially while running, chances are that her Achilles tendon has stiffened and is swollen. If she describes the pain as similar to the feeling of somebody whacking the back of her leg, she may have ruptured it.

16. Haglund’s Deformity

Wearing shoes with stiff backs and high heels can aggravate the back of the heel, causing a fleshy and painful bump to grow.

17. Bursitis of the Heel

Beneath the heel bone is a fluid-filled sack called the bursa. When inflamed, this sack makes any weight-bearing activity painful.

18. Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome

Tarsal tunnel syndrome is a pain caused by pinched nerves.

Tingling and burning sensations or numbness along the bottom of the foot might indicate tarsal tunnel syndrome, which is treatable with orthotics. However, this condition mimics more serious issues ranging from pinched spinal nerves to cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

19. Plantar Fasciitis

One of the most common foot problems and often of unknown etiology, plantar fasciitis refers to a painfully inflamed ligament along the sole of the foot. Plantar (sole) fasciitis (connective tissue pain). A telltale sign of this condition is when the problem feels worse in the morning.

Plantar fasciitis is often confused with heel spurs, which are calcified growths that develop on the bottom of the heel. These result from the repeated stretching of the plantar tendon from its attachment to the heel bone.

20. Fungal infections

Scales or streaking, crumbling, flaking, and yellow spots on your toenails may be signs that you have a fungal infection. This can occur from fungi entering seniors’ toenail because of its moist environment.

Symptoms may develop slowly. Seniors may get the fungus because of a medical condition like diabetes, exposure to contaminated nail instruments, use of a public place like a swimming pool or locker room, or a skin injury near seniors’ toenail.

How to Treat Seniors’ Feet in 10 Steps

1. Keep feet clean

Good foot hygiene is critical to preventing fungal, viral, and bacterial infections, so routine foot cleaning may need to happen both inside and outside of the bath or shower.

Making a regular habit of simple foot wipedowns with warm water, mild soap, and a washcloth will do the trick. Always dry thoroughly. And if done at night, it can even promote relaxation prior to sleep.

2. Moisturize feet

Moisturizing is very important for preventing open foot sores, especially for seniors whose skin is drier. Foot dry skin is more prone to cracking, flaking, itching and breaking.

Foot lotions should be applied after feet have been thoroughly washed and dried. That locks in moisture and helps keep skin soft and supple.

Afterwards, cover feet with breathable cotton socks for comfort and warmth.

 3. Trim toenails

Keeping toenails trimmed is another important element of seniors’ foot care. If they get overgrown, it can cause pain or even interfere with stable walking.

But avoid trimming the corners of nails, as they can cause ingrown nails.

Soaking and massaging feet before trimming may help.

4. Monitor sores

A very common location for bedsores is on the heels of the feet and for seniors who spend most of their time in bed or a chair, continuously resting their feet on a surface like a pillow, footstool, or mattress throughout the day can result in pressure and skin irritation that leads to tissue breakdown.

Prevent this type of potentially life-threatening condition by “floating the heels”, propping the ankles up so the feet rest suspended in the air without touching anything.

Also, try to elevate feet using a footstool or cushion when seated. And don’t sit with legs crossed.

5. Wear clean cotton socks

There are many benefits of using cotton socks. Cotton socks are breathable, much more so than polyester. This ensures your feet will sweat less, and the material will wick away excess moisture. Cotton is also very good for sensitive skin or if seniors suffer from any allergies.

6. Get properly fitting footwear

The health of seniors’ feet can largely come down to their footwear.

Wearing shoes that are too small or too big can impact more than comfort levels — they can rub and cause blisters and other foot ailments as well as impair mobility.

In general, seniors should avoid wearing heels higher than 1 inch and find close-toe shoes that are comfortable and support their arch type, foot width, and ankle.

Keep in mind that the right shoes can treat and prevent many common foot problems in seniors:

Shoes with wide toe boxes and specialized cushions are the normal remedy for corn and callouses. They can also be used to both prevent and treat hammertoe, Morton’s neuroma and many other foot problems.

Moreover, padded stiff-soled padded shoes with low heels usually help sesamoiditis and stress fracture, other common foot problems in seniors mentioned at the beggining of this post.

Specialized insoles and other aids can both treat and prevent Achilles tendonitis.

Heel pads and soft shoes can alleviate Haglund’s deformity, Plantar fasciitis and Bursitis of the heel.

And these are just a few examples.

7. Avoid walking barefoot

Even though many generations before us walked barefoot, we should avoid it. Walking barefoot on hard surfaces causes our foot to collapse which can lead to a tremendous amount of stress not only to the foot but to the rest of the body too.

Besides, without appropriate strength in the foot, seniors are at risk of having poor mechanics of walking, thereby increasing their risk for injury.

8. Get medical attention when needed

Common foot conditions like bunions, hammer toes, discolored toenails, corns, and calluses may seem harmless.

But if a senior has any of these, it’s worth getting an evaluation from a podiatrist to prevent harmful developments later, like infections.

Foot experts may recommend simple conservative measures like wearing orthotic aids, like toe separators, bunions pads, and ankle braces.They might also recommend updating footwear or topically treating any skin or nail conditions.

9. Promote circulation

Seniors who suffer from chronic illnesses like diabetes, peripheral artery disease, or conditions that limit mobility may experience reduced circulation in their lower legs and feet.

That can contribute to dangerous developments like blood clots.

Circulation in senior feet can be improved with foot massages, elevating the lower legs when resting, and talking with their doctor about prescribing compression hose.

10. Address pain

Feet are often the first parts of the body to show symptoms related to conditions like arthritis, diabetic neuropathy. They can also be affected by injuries like plantar fasciitis.

If seniors experience pain, tingling, numbness, stiffness, or inflammation in their feet or ankles, they should see a doctor or podiatrist for a thorough exam as soon as possible.

Catching early warning signs can help you take quick action to prevent medical complications down the line.

Most of all, remember to regularly inspect feet for skin cracks or peeling, color and temperature anomalies, or thick and discolored nails.

A foot spa could be a good way to care for seniors feet, if you want to know more about it, check our post “Do Seniors Need a Foot Spa?”

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