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Weird big toe joint "injury" ...w/bruise, what is this? (Read 11260 times)

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rectumdamnnearkilledem

    Yesterday I was stepping down into our kitchen (kitchen is maybe 4-5" lower than the rest of the house).  As my left foot contacted the floor I felt like I had stepped on a small, hard object and was fully expecting to see a piece of cat food or pebble or something about that size and shape under my left big toe joint.  The pain was not severe, but was fairly sharp.


    There was nothing there and no sign of any small object that could have caused the pain, but for a while it felt kind of like there was a knot or lump under the toe joint...I couldn't feel a knot or anything abnormal with my fingers, it was just a short-lived sensation that didn't bother me within an hour or so afterwards.


    As I was putting my socks on this morning I noticed that I have bruising around about 2/3 of the circumference of my big toe...from side-to-side and under.  No bruising on top of joint.  I ran a 15k race without even a hint of discomfort...I actually had forgotten about it until I took my socks off and remembered the bruising.


    A few hours later it's still a little tender, but not sore.


    Any clue what this could be?  I'm not finding anything via Google that explains this.  I don't know if this is caused by running or stepping funny, or what.  It's not really bothering me, I just hope it's not a sign of something that could turn serious.

    Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

    remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.    

         ~ Sarah Kay

    Redvette74


      I had to become a member just so I could tell you that the very same thing happend to me and I can not seem to find anything on the topic. Earlier today I was walking in my driveway barefoot after coming out of the pool and I suddendly fely this pain under my right toe as if I stepped on something. When I lifted my foot to check it out there were no signs that I actually stepped on anything. I had this strange sharp pain and ache under my toe in between the pad of the toe and the joint where it connects to my foot. It felt quite sore and hurt for a while after that. Within an hour it started to ease up so I didn't think much else about it until later in the evening when I looked at it and noticed a small red bruise. A couple hours later I looked at it again and saw that the bruise had spread and I also had what looked like tiny blood vessels on the pad of the toe. It is still tender and hurts if I rub it. I just think it's strange how it came on and then bruised without any apparent injury.

       

      Soooo, if you or anyone happens to have any ideas on what could have caused this, please let me know.

       

      Thanks! =)

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      rectumdamnnearkilledem

        Oh, weird that I'm not the only one who has dealt with that--I still have no idea what caused it.  I showed it to my MIL (she used to be a very avid runner) and she was perplexed.  She deals with hallux limitus (arthritis of the big toe joint), but has never experienced what I had.


        I did find one thing that suggested it to be a sprain, but it also said it would be very painful for a while and mine really wasn't painful after the initial sharp pain.

        Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

        remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.    

             ~ Sarah Kay

        HOSS1961


          Could it be a broken blood vessel???
          HOSS 2009 Goals Have a healthy back and run w/o pain! Drop 15 pounds gained while injured


          Along for the Ride

            Could it be a broken blood vessel???

             

            That's what I would think too. The vessel breaks and blood leaks into the tissue = pain. Then the bruise just absorbs itself over time.

            Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens.

            Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars.

             

            Aaron Heath


              I've had a similar problem, which I thought might have been caused by tying my shoe too tight. Not sure if that was the problem, but its since gone away. I have a pair of shoes that are too stiff and sometimes when they are too tight, the entire area around my big toe gets sore. Since this has happened, I try not to wear shoes with any or much added support, and I don't tie them very tight.

               

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              rectumdamnnearkilledem

                 

                That's what I would think too. The vessel breaks and blood leaks into the tissue = pain. Then the bruise just absorbs itself over time.

                 Yeah, that's the only thing I can guess.  There didn't seem to be any mechanical issue...no bones out of place or anything.  Very strange, though.

                Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

                remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.    

                     ~ Sarah Kay

                  Had a similar pain with a smaller section of bruising when walking around the pool on vacation. Bruise grew a little and lasted a day and a half or so around the same spot as the others pointed outm and I have a bad habit of cracking my toes when I'm barefoot so I kept rehashing the pain. I put ice under my foot when napping in the room and went cold turkey on the toe cracking and it seemed to loosen up and the bruise disappeared after the 2nd night. Maybe it was a sign I should try doing some barefoot work =/
                  NYCNorma


                    I had that happen three times over a period of a couple of months.  A nursing friend said they were broken blood vessels.  Seems like she was worried about me having that, but I can't remember why.    Anyway, that was a few years ago before I started running and it hasn't happened since.  


                    SMART Approach

                      I was playing softball last year and kind of missteped running over a base and sort of landed wrong on my big weird.  I may have jammed it a bit but that joint wasn't right for 4 -6 weeks. Depending on how much joint space and hyaline cartilage you have around joint, with a misstep one may have create a slight and temporary bone on bone effect causing a minor bone contusion or in my case a more severe bone contusion or some slight damage to bone or cartilage on bone. I had to tape my big toe and next toe together to create a splinting effect or I couldn't even jog.

                      Run Coach. Recovery Coach. Founder of SMART Approach Training, Coaching & Recovery

                      Structured Marathon Adaptive Recovery Training

                      Safe Muscle Activation Recovery Technique

                      www.smartapproachtraining.com

                      smg123


                        my husband and i have a cleaning service and i was cleaning a ladies house the other day and was walking thru her kitchen bare footed while getting ready to clean floors and all the sudden i had a sharp pain in my left big toe like i had stepped on something so i grabbed my toe and saw that i hadnt stepped on anything. I had a sort of shooting stinging pain for around 10 mins or so i guess cuz i just tried to ignore it and finish cleaning. I didnt think anything else about it until i got in shower later that night and noticed that my toe was bruised with a black,blue and red color. My spot is on the outer side of my big toe close to the bend of my toe. Its kind of sensitive to the touch but nothing serious. I didnt know what to think. I have heard of diabetics having problems with their feet & toes and im suppose to b tested for diabeties soon so i was thinking mayb that had something to do with it.  Now i just think its a broken blood vessel. I am just curious to know why i would have a broken blood vessel on my toe when ive never had one b4. I have had them on my legs but no pain or anything. If u find anything out please let me know what u find out. Thanks!!!

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                        rectumdamnnearkilledem

                          smg, are your broken blood vessels on your legs pretty frequent?

                           

                          It's funny this thread has resurrected, just now.  I've noticed that any hard cycling effort (like a long/hilly/fast workout or race) will leave my legs with at least 1 "bruise," sometimes 3-4.  These aren't standard hematomas from impact, as I've not fallen.  I never have noticed this from running, either.  The marks tend to be on my thighs or the medial side of my calves.

                           

                          Years ago I had a surgeon refer to me as "a bleeder," after I nearly required a unit of blood, even though I'd avoided any blood-thinning foods or meds for weeks before my operation.  When I bruise they're usually very dark and I bruise easily.  I've been very leery to take up mountain biking, due to my tendencies to bruise and bleed so easily.  I have fears of being in the middle of a forest and having a bad crash.

                           

                          I also have relatively low BP (typically 110/60).  I've wondered if the 2 things could be related, since people with high BP sometimes end up on blood thinners.  I avoid aspirin, just to be safe.

                          Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

                          remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.    

                               ~ Sarah Kay

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                          rectumdamnnearkilledem

                            On the topic...a couple of recent photos...

                             

                            Here's my leg the day after a cyclocross race (no falls):

                             

                            And after a wholly undramatic 0mph tip-over with a set of troublesome road pedals (on a side note: 2 friends bought the same Shimano 105 pedals within a week of me and we all had issues with pedal release on the loosest setting.  Much happier with my Look Keos, even on mid-range tension):

                            Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

                            remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.    

                                 ~ Sarah Kay

                            DirtyGraceFlint


                            The Crap Whisperer

                              My eyes! Lord have mercy I didn't need to see the bloody knee up close! Ouch!

                              Being the best tiny spec that I can be!