Discomfort in the ball of the foot is a very common condition and can be caused by many different conditions. Commonly the name, metatarsalgia is used for this problem however that word is extremely pointless because it is like just saying that you have a painful hip. The discomfort that gets lumped under this name may vary from a simple corn of the skin under the ball of the foot to a stress fracture of the metatarsal bone to a nerve entrapment to an joint inflammation type condition. All of these problems are totally different to one another and each of these should be treated differently and possess unique final results. Because of this it ought to be no surprise that the idea of metatarsalgia is not a very good expression, just like stating the hip is sore.
Figuring out the various factors that cause pain within the ball of the foot might be a challenge as a number of the conditions will often have identical signs and symptoms during the early phases. For this reason a competent clinician is normally needed to have the diagnosis right to ensure the ideal treatment can be directed at it as well as time and money isn't wasted pursing the wrong diagnosis. Some disorders such as a plantar plate tear which is a common cause of discomfort in the ball of the foot have numerous clinical tests which can be done to help determine whether this is the disorder. Others like a stress fracture of the bone is likely to require an x-ray to get the diagnosis right. Arthritis like problems are difficult to diagnose in the early stages and it can be a situation of merely waiting around to discover the way the situation progresses. Quite often checking out those kind of issues is often a matter of ruling out the other concerns like a plantar plate tear or neuroma by the clinical tests and imaging. For those who have pain in the ball of the foot, then you should find a reliable podiatrist and get the diagnosis correct.