Pain In Big Toe???

[LauraMk30]

Hey all 🌹

I’m not sure what’s happening, but over the last week I’ve had shooting & stabbing pains in my right big toe. I thought at first it could be cramp but the pain comes & goes but it’s very painful & not like any cramp I’ve had before. It comes on very intense & subsides after a few minutes. I’ve tried to manipulate my toe & use a heat compress but the stabbing feeling seems to be long lasting! I do have some numbness down the side of my toe, that I’ve had for quite some time, but during a attack the tip of my toe feels hot & I get an agonising pain from tip down the nail & into my foot.

I’m not sure what it means ?

It’s happened quite frequently and I’m thinking of seeing my GP.

Any advice would be amazing

Thank you in advance xx

[CarolMcl]

Have you ever been tested for gout?

[LauraMk30 in reply to CarolMcl]

No I haven’t.. I’m not sure I’ve heard of gout !? I’ll do some research x

[CarolMcl in reply to LauraMk30]

It's a form of arthritis which causes excess uric acid in the bloodstream which crystalises. It used to be known as a rich man's disease due to their rich diet x

[LauraMk30 in reply to CarolMcl]

Oh right, that’s strange as my diet is of malnutrition. Is it possible for me to have that even though I don’t have a rich diet. X

[CarolMcl]

No, the kidneys don't eliminate uric acid efficiently. This could be due to diet, alcohol, diabetes, diuretics, weight issues, there's lots of reasons x

[LauraMk30 in reply to CarolMcl]

Ahh right ok, I’ve had issues with my kidneys lately too. Comes & goes, my urine is coffee colour. So very dark. I’ll mention this to my GP x thanks so much your wisdom is invaluable x

[CarolMcl in reply to LauraMk30]

Drink more water if urine is dark, sounds concentrated. There could be so many reasons for the problems you're experiencing, may not even be gout but worth checking out. Keep well x

[whisperit]

CarolMcl's suggestion would be top of my list too, just in case. Gout pain is typically intense and people often can't bear even a gentle touch on the affected toes. How's your joint pain elsewhere? I ask because the aching and swelling that has become routine/ever-present in my hands first announced itself with transient shooting pains that only gradually "smoothed out" into a more chronic pain? I also get sharp pains when one toe goes rogue and decides to do the Raynauds thing on its own - it resolves after prolonged warming. x

[LauraMk30 in reply to whisperit]

Hey Whisperit,

This pain I’m getting in my toe is pretty disabling, my partner tried to manipulate it but I couldn’t sit still, I found it extremely painful & it bought me to tears. I’m hyper mobile anyway but my right hips been cracking more & has swelled & my right knee has swelled too. I thought it could because of my extreme reaction to cold but this is something new. I’ve just had another attack of intense pain in my toe & im in tears now as I write. I have to see my GP as I can’t stand this, this toe/joint pain is something else. X

[whisperit in reply to LauraMk30]

ouchie. my dad gets gout. when he gets a flare-up, he has to take extra meds and leave the affected foot elevated until the episode eases, usually after a fortnight or so. Hope this gets sorted out - keep us posted x

[LauraMk30 in reply to whisperit]

I’m just reading about it, and shock horror it’s very similar, your poor dad, having it elevated sounds like a good idea. I’ve just tried to take my sock off but I can’t even touch it. I assumed that was it & the pain would disappear like it has done but it’s coming back & lasting longer. I feel for your dad. Thank you hun I’m sure to let you know, & thank you x

[EOLHPC]

Gout is a possibility,...also Pseudogout (my rheumatologist has tested me for both)

patient.info/health/calcium...

Also could be something as basic as involuted big toe nail: recent podiatry scalpel treatment has helped reduce my big toe pain this way. E.g. as described in this Lupus UK info...eg “Callus formation in the nail sulcus (onychophosis) is a common complaint but seems especially painful in lupus”:

lupusuk.org.uk/medical/gp-g...

Am v much feeling for you: my feet & both my big toes are trouble too...been nursing them along for many many years...i could go on & on about this subject...

🍀🍀🍀🍀 coco

[LauraMk30 in reply to EOLHPC]

Hey coco,

Thanks for replying with valuable information & advice , I’ve done a little research PseudoGout, gosh! I hope I hope I get some answers.

I’ve had a few attacks of intense pain over the past days, unable to walk or move.

BUT! I’m a little concerned now as I’ve started to get unusual feelings ...

What I mean is I’ve had ummm I’m embarrassed to say umm, 😱 numbness on the right side . Right side of my lady region, & down my right thigh, it was very strange & an unusual feeling. When I felt the feeling coming back it was a lot like pins & needles but like a million sharp stabs all at once. I don’t know what numbness on one side of my lady 🌸 garden & thigh means ???????

I didn’t want to make a post about it as I’m very embarrassed.

I hate all this weird stuff, as I have no one to turn to apart from you lovelies. Which is a god send xx

[EOLHPC in reply to LauraMk30]

Hmmmm....i would definitely get a quick GP Surgery appt now: even a nurse practitioner would do...in my experience n.p.s have known when i really needed to see a GP, and they’ve got me in to see one quickly when necessary. Your thing sounds complex...maybe these are separate issues, maybe not...wish i could be more help.

Am glad those feet links are helping. Here is another i especially like cause it includes hypermobility info:

arthritisresearchuk.org/hea...

Hope you’ll keep us posted 🍀😘🍀😘

[Fezzywig]

Really sounds like gout is your culprit. Check out YouTube when you researching and you can see lots of examples. It’s also interesting to note that when flares do get really bad doctors can sometimes drain inflamed areas. Often when that is done, the uric acid crystals can be seen spilling out from the grossly inflamed sites. This can provide patients with welcomed relief.

[LauraMk30 in reply to Fezzywig]

That fezzywig,

Thanks so much for your advice, I will definitely do that. I haven’t been officially diagnosed with SLE. I did have the concrete diagnosis in 2017 but the doctors assumed I had something else., giving me the run around! Hopefully my GP will arrange some blood tests for me. Or at least help me to get some form of relief.

X

[Fezzywig in reply to Fezzywig]

Hey, no thanks needed. We are all in this insanity together. I just hope that someone, doctor, nurse or pa, can actually help you. It drives me wild when they get buried in all of the lab work and don’t bother to really see what is right in front of them. That would be someone like us, people with battered immune systems that never seem to fit in the lines. I have actually gone to doctors in such great pain and with a multitude of red flag issues, yet been turned away without treatment because my blood work did not reveal anything. omg. I am so sorry. It is very late and I do not mean to rant.

Please let us know how things do turn out for you.

[LauraMk30 in reply to Fezzywig]

Fezzywig, no need to apologise, you can message at any hour

I can totally relate, I’m so used to be dismissed & rejected by GPs, I started to suffer in silence because each time I would go to see them I would be patronised, & made of fun.

For exaggerating, or being dramatic, I turned to them for help because that is there job, but was turned away because of my age, & low risk assumptions. Until my blood work & scans showed significant issues, I wasn’t treated like the clown they made me feel. So I can understand how you feel.. I’m waiting for a few appointment dates to land on my doorstep, I’m hoping to see my GP on Thursday about my new symptoms, I won’t be shunned & dismissed this time round, my mental state is broken because of them & I’m being made to wait yet another 6 months to see a therapist, I guess if my head was rolling off my shoulders they might only then take me seriously..

It’s such a shame that we have to get to breaking point to be heard. X oh & rant all you like it’s good to have a good blow out every now & then.

Always good to talk it through too x

[poseymint]

Hi LauraMK- My Lupus/Sjogrens comes with an especially annoying symptom- neuropathy. It feels like I am being bitten by fire ants! You likely don't have fire ants in the UK- it feels like little stings from head to toe, one sting at a time. Different from what you describe, but neuropathy can be nerves firing pain signals in different patterns. Also the numbness could possibly be sciatica, an inflammation of the sciatic nerve?

I take 300mg hydroxy (Plaquinil). It helps. Good luck. Hope you find your answers!