You would know if you are suffering from a contracted toe or a hammer toe if an evident deformity could be seen in the ball of the foot, the location of which is particularly found on the bone behind the second, third and fourth toes. While it initially manifests pain on the same area, there are ways to prevent the pain felt in the ball of the foot and hopefully prevent an orthopedic surgery.
Since one of the reasons why the ball of the foot results in pain is wearing of high heeled shoes, wearing these should be put to a minimum. While high heels are not entirely discouraged, you must only wear a pair occasionally. It is best that you sport a more comfy pair of shoes. You may suppose that you are not experiencing hammer toes at all as soon as the pain subsides with this piece of advice.
If pain still remains even if you are already wearing practical shoes everyday, then it is time to contact an orthopedic or even a Center Line Podiatrist.
Once you are officially diagnosed to have a hammer toe, you have to know that surgery is not the immediate solution for this. You have to initially make use of specially-made cushions that are meant to straighten the toe as you walk or merely stand.
Once more, comfortable shoes are recommended, one that has enough room in the toe areas, so that the pads will halt the irritation as well as rubbing on the top of the toes. This would consequently alleviate the pain by lessening the pressure placed on the ball of the foot.
If you remain to wear pointy high heels and steer clear of these special cushions, expect a surgery to be underway. This would not be too advantageous to your part due to its expensive costs, initial pain and lengthy recovery process.
So instead of hating the way your comfortable shoes or orthopedic shoes look, just imagine the embarrassment you would put yourself into when you wear a huge, boot-like cast after a Hammertoe Surgery.