Safe Ways To Treat Painful Corns

The infamous corn on the foot popularly represents foot deformity and aging. The truth is that anyone of any age can develop corns. All that is required is a toe that is slightly abnormally shaped or positioned through a common condition such as a hammer toe. This abnormal position will create added areas of pressure on the top, sides, or tip of the toe when such pressure is not anticipated by the skin. Corns are the areas of hard skin that form as a result of this pressure, a natural protective response of the skin. They can be the source of frustrating pain, especially when tighter dress shoes are worn that have a narrower space for the toes to sit in. The very same shoes that cause the corns to hurt also cause the corns to grow in the first place, leading to a never-ending cycle. Many people have traditionally tried numerous potentially harmful home treatments to relieve the pain, including using acid patches or cutting the corn with a scissors or razor blade. The following safe measures are podiatrist-approved to help relieve painful corns.

Emery Boards or Pumice Stones: Razors are dangerous to use on oneself, and scissors can pose much the same risk due to the fact that scissors were not designed to be used on such surfaces as toe skin. By gently filing the corn with an emery board or pumice stone after bathing while the skin is still moist, one can remove a safe amount of the hard build-up of skin. When repeated every several days, one can stay ahead of the growth of the corn to keep it under control. Severe thickness or deep growth of the corn requires the skilled hand of a podiatrist to safely remove the tissue, especially if one is diabetic or has poor circulation or sensation in the feet and legs.

Toe Sleeve Pads: These unique and helpful pads are sold nationwide under many brand names and lengths. Essentially, these are tube-like pads made with an elastic outer layer over a soft silicone gel inner layer. They are sold pre-cut to toe length, or as one long tube that is cut to shape. These pads fit over the toes, and pad corns on both the top and the side of the toe. The elastic layer keeps the pad on the toe, and the gel layer cushions the corn from pressure and friction.

Crest Pads: It is not uncommon for corns to develop on the ends of the toes, especially if the toe is bent downward at its tip due to a contracted toe deformity. For this type of corn, the use of a crescent-shaped pad called a crest pad is helpful. This pad sits underneath the bases of the toes where the toes meet the foot, secured to the middle toe with a adjustable strap. It essentially pushes the ends of the toes upward when pressure is placed on the ball of the foot, removing some of the pressure along the tip of the toe where the corn develops. They are usually washable and durable, being made of felt, leather, or silicone gel.

Aperture Pads: These doughnut shaped pads are made of felt or foam, and come in multiple sizes. There is an adhesive backing to them that allows the pad to stick on the skin like an band-aid. The idea is to surround the corn with the pad, while the corn sits in the hole. The surrounding pad disperses some of the pressure on the corn to the padding. Unfortunately, these must be replaced often as the adhesive does not last long, and friction can rub it off the toe.

Toe Separators: Corns in between the toes are commonly found where a toe has an area that rubs into the toe next to it. When a toe is contracted, such as in a hammertoe deformity, any abnormal position of the toe bone on the skin can cause the skin to thicken in response. When this area is close enough to another toe to irritate its skin as well, an identical corn may form on the side of the other toe. Toe separators are rounded pads with a concave base that sit snugly in between the toes to pad and separate them from one another. Made of foam, gel, or soft plastic, these pads cushion the toe spaces and prevent one toe from rubbing on the other.

Deeper, Wider Shoes: Although it may seem an obvious choice to some, the use of shoes that wont rub the toes is a difficult concept for others to accept as a solution to painful corns. By choosing shoes that are wide enough for ones foot, and deep enough to accommodate higher toes, the pressure on the toes is reduced and the growth of corns is lessened. Unfortunately, fashion outweighs common sense much of the time when corns are involved.

Surgery: All the above measures are helpful, but simply make it easier to live with corns without actually addressing the underlying cause, which is the toe deformity itself. Surgery to straighten out the toe or remove any bone prominence that irritates the overlying skin is often the permanent solution to a corn problem. Not everyone is a good surgical candidate, but outpatient toe surgery generally has a low risk of major complications, and one can return to activity in shoes in a relatively short period of time. Most all podiatrists perform toe reconstructive surgery, and are the preferred specialists for foot and ankle surgery of any kind.

Corns are frustrating, but aggressive and improper self-treatment at home can make a bad situation worse. By following the advice in this article, one can help reduce the pain that corns can produce, and help make walking with shoes comfortable again.