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Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause?
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After many months of foot and ankle problems, I have decided to post my problem in hopes that a slowtwitcher out there will recognize my symptoms and help lead me to what is causing my foot pain.

In early November I went out for a run and one of my first steps I took, I felt extreme sharp pain in the outside of my ankle near where my ankle meets my foot. It was so sharp I did not run for the next 5 days. Once I started running again I ran much less in volume. It bothered me some days but not others, but was not sharp pain anymore.

The day after Thanksgiving I got the sharp pain again, so sharp that I had to walk home from my run. I then took a full week off from running, and again once when I started running I sometimes felt some pain, but often not.

Then in mid-December I tore my quad muscle and assumed that by the time my quad healed, my ankle and foot issue would certainly be healed. At the end of December, with several weeks of no lower body workouts, I was surprised my ankle and foot still hurt so I went to see a physicians assistant at an orthopedist office. He diagnosed me with sinus tarsi and gave me a cortisone shot in my ankle. Within a few days my ankle pain subsided but I continued to have sharp pain in my foot.

I went back to the doctor in early February and he said I had peroneal tendonitis as a result of having the sinus tarsi going untreated for so long. He sent me to PT. I went to PT for 6 weeks and at the end of 6 weeks, which is where I am now, I greatly improved strength, balance and flexibility in my leg, ankle and foot but it did nothing to fix the problem of sharp pain in my foot.

My PT guy is now sending me back to the physicians assistant and I have to wait several weeks to get in, so that is where I am at right now.

A few other notes, the sharp pain is not in only one place, and it comes and goes what seems totally random to me. I can be perfectly fine for hours and then all of a sudden I put my foot down and get a sharp pain. The pain can last anywhere from a few minutes to several days before it subsides. The sharp pain is also in many different locations but is always somewhere on the top of my foot and I feel it when my weight is on my foot.

I am really frustrated at this point. I did have an x-ray in both December and February and both x-rays looked clean. I also saw a chiropractor a few times in December, as well as a massage therapist who worked on my lower leg muscles. Neither of these avenues helped.

I am wondering if any of you have experienced anything similar to this and can offer any advice on what could be causing this pain.

Thanks in advance!
Dana
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [DanaG] [ In reply to ]
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I have recommended Grastons treatment and acupuncture for this many times and everyone has always been pleased with the results. I won't delve into a long explaination of my experience again. But it works, use it. Search for a more long winded explanation. Also cissus supplement and heat seemed to help the total healing process. Get healthy.



"4 wheels move the body, 2 wheels move the soul"
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [warwicke36] [ In reply to ]
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I had not thought of acupuncture; I'll have to look into that. I have never had Grastons technique done, but when I went to a chiropractor in December I selected one that is certified in both ART and Grastons and had good recommendations from other local athletes, and all he did with my ankle was adjust it and tape it. Neither helped at all.

There are some other local chiropractors who are certified in Grastons and have been recommended. Maybe I will try another one. Thanks.
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [DanaG] [ In reply to ]
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Do you have flat feet? This sounds exactly like the pain that I have been dealing with. The pain I have is in that pocket (I forget the name) just below the "ball" at the base of your leg bone. I ended up being diagnosed with arthritis and bone spurs which became aggravated at the bottom of my "stroke" when my foot over-pronates. Surprisingly super feet insoles have helped me a great deal. My doctor prescribed orthotics but I couldn't get them to work for me.
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [TUEFELHUNDEN] [ In reply to ]
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Nope, I have high arches. I've been a runner for eight plus years and have worn superfeet since about my second month running. They have worked great for my feet as well for many years.
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [DanaG] [ In reply to ]
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Cuboid syndrome is your likely diagnosis. Usually self limiting, which is nice, but can take a while with nothing proven to increase healing other than time, though lots of modalities are helpful for symptoms. Best of luck.

____________________________________
Fatigue is biochemical, not biomechanical.
- Andrew Coggan, PhD
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [DanaG] [ In reply to ]
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Funny you mention super feet. I got my peroneal tendinitis after using super feet on a few runs... i also have high arches. Ditched them after the injury. Since grastons and acupuncture I havent had it come back. If they work for you maybe it's not the isssue. But perhaps certain shoes plus super feet it a problem. New shoes before the problem arose?



"4 wheels move the body, 2 wheels move the soul"
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [rroof] [ In reply to ]
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Thank you for responding, rroof. I was hoping you would reply with your thoughts.

That is interesting, I have never thought of cuboid syndrome. I only know what it is because about 4 years ago I tried to self diagnose a problem with my other foot, and that was what I came up with. I was wrong in my diagnosis at that time but because of that I have previously read about it. I'll do some more reading now about it, but I have a few questions that maybe you can answer.

Can cuboid syndrome cause pain that changes areas? I would think the pain would be limited to the cuboid area. There is such a variety in the places I have pain in the top of my foot. Sometimes it is on the outer portion near my pinky toe, sometimes it is near my toes but in the middle of my foot, and sometimes it is on the top of the inside of my foot, right where my foot meets my leg. Only occasionally do I feel the sharp pain near where the cuboid is.

When you say "lots of modalities are helpful for symptoms" can you tell me what you think I should be doing for it? Thanks so much for your help.
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [warwicke36] [ In reply to ]
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I started wearing superfeet very early in my running days, about 8 years ago, because I was getting sharp arch pain. As soon as I started wearing the superfeet my arch pain never happened again. So I hesitate to ditch the superfeet.

I have also worn Brooks Adrenaline since the beginning and I have never varied my shoe. I have always considered my feet to be my "weakest link" so as soon as I found a shoe that worked for me, I have never strayed from it. So I really don't think it is a shoe or insert issue because I've been so consistent with what I've worn.
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [DanaG] [ In reply to ]
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I do find cuboid "syndrome" (sinus tarsi syndrome similar) to be pretty vague with both physical exam and with patient's descriptions. But, yes, pain is usually localized to the lateral and dorsal area of the cuboid. However, if it is locked/subluxed, then there can be other odd symptoms in the more rigid, supinated foot that most people have with this.

I can't comment on acupuncture since this shouldn't be helpful in any way (if in fact this is your diagnosis), but if it helps, no harm. This sorta' falls into the phrase "the art of medicine is occupying a patient while the body heals itself" category. As for PT (for which "Graston" is simply a type), certainly might be helpful especially if tight calf (gastroc/soleus/peroneals, etc.)

____________________________________
Fatigue is biochemical, not biomechanical.
- Andrew Coggan, PhD
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [rroof] [ In reply to ]
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Interesting. At the time of my original injury back in early November, if I had to guess what happened is that it felt like my ankle joint just locked up. No warning at all. I just took a step and it happened.

One thing I did not mention previously is that I feel like my foot wants to sit crooked now. When I look down at my feet, my bad foot often is positioned in such a way that it is leaning on the outside of my foot, with the bottom of my foot angled toward my other foot. That is the position that feels natural and I try to correct it when I notice it. Is that symptom in line with cuboid syndrome?

Would orthotics help with this condition at all? My PT guy thinks that will be the next step my doctor takes with me. It doesn't sound right to me because it seems odd that a trauma event would be fixed with orthotics.
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [DanaG] [ In reply to ]
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Stop Crowd sorcing get a diagnostic ultrasound .no radiation .Wonderful pictures in real time. .you can even guide the doctor scanning you.

Happy
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [DanaG] [ In reply to ]
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I get this exact same pain when I combine Superfeet with a fairly built up shoe. A very very sharp, "locking up" type pain right under the outer ankle "ball".
I'd consider the Adrenalines to be very built up and perhaps they offer too much structure which might not allow the foot to operate correctly. Likewise I have strained my peroneal tendon when I foolishly tried orthotics combined with a stability shoe.

Personally in my experience you either use inserts/orthotics with a light/neutral shoe or a stability shoe, not both.

For the record my heavy shoe is now a New Balance 1400 without any inserts, I used to be in a NB 1220 with orthotics...
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [mr.fincher] [ In reply to ]
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Thanks Mr.Fincher. I'll think about that; although I have a hard time believing it is my shoe and insert combination since that combination worked successfully for me for many, many years. I also haven't run in months, therefore have not worn my running shoes much and my condition has not improved.
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [DanaG] [ In reply to ]
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My situation is somewhat similar and for me an MRI turned out to be the best diagnostic tool, it really tracks down inflammation. I had a surfing accident three months ago and after the cuts from hitting my feet on coral subsided I realized I had developed ankle pain that was sometimes sharp and sudden, and was exacerbated by running. The x-ray came back clean but the MRI clearly showed an osteochondral lesion on the lateral dome of the talus (i.e. ankle bone). I've had two opinions on whether I need surgery, one yes and one no. I'm going with "no" for now because it doesn't hurt if I don't run. They don't really know if it'll heal by itself, so I might do surgery eventually.

I know I need to take it easy to help my chances of healing but it's so hard to! I miss running. I'm planning to do a a sprint tri or two this year, and probably some longer races where I just plan to DNF in T2.

Good luck, I know it's frustrating not having a diagnosis.

Alex
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [DanaG] [ In reply to ]
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Sounds like plantar fasciitis to me rather than cuboid sydrome. Maybe this article is worth a read!
Last edited by: mandymandy: Oct 9, 17 3:31
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [DanaG] [ In reply to ]
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I’m finding your history to be a bit vague and thought I would ask some clarifying questions.

What position is your foot in when the pain occurs? Is is always in weight bearing? What are you doing with your foot just prior to standing? Any prolonged funny positions? Are you ever able to step on the foot without pain when you expected it to occur? If so what are you doin with your foot beforehand?
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [DanaG] [ In reply to ]
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Sharp pain as in electricity or little lightening bolts? Especially if it varies where you feel it, it could be scar tissue compressing nerves. Mine felt like a bone bruise at first as that is where it started, the metatarsals. As it went on it was like someone sticking needles in my feet in random places. They ruled out everything, fracture, neuroma. Did some research and talked to my chiro. I had scar tissue and he could feel it. He did active release, note that it does not get better right away and took a few weeks to break it up and for the nerves to settle down after being continually irritated. I could scarcely walk at times before I figured this out and started the ART. Every now and again I feel it but keep up with ART and rolling my feet on a spike ball takes care of it.
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [Calvinbal6] [ In reply to ]
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My original post was 3 1/2 years ago and my injury was 4 years ago..... amazingly when my post was revived today I read through my original injury and all of my symptoms 4 years later remain the same.

It is vague....there is no rhyme or reason as to when my foot has sharp pain. Totally random. I spent 2 years and thousands of dollars getting help from various specialists and having test after test done with no resolution.

I used to race long distance triathlon prior to this foot issue. Last month I did a sprint triathlon marking 4 full years since my last triathlon of any kind. I just hoped to get through the run unscathed and luckily I made it through, and had a great time doing what I used to love to do!
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Re: Sharp pain in foot, looking for cause? [DanaG] [ In reply to ]
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Check with your doctor. I hope it has nothing to do with deep vein thrombosis which could really be serious. Sometimes it could be a normal sprain or a curable fracture but some serious conditions could require special attention. Sports active people seems to be healthy but they could also encounter physical problems that need not to be ignored.
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