WHAT ARE HAMMER TOES?

In general, the term "hammer toe" describes a buckling of any kind of toe joints. Joints at the end or the middle of the toe, as well as the joint near the ball of the foot, may be affected. Toe joints usually curl under because of the muscle imbalance or tight tendons. Hammer toes vary in severity and in the number of joints and toes involved.

Types of Hammer Toes

Hammer toes may be flexible or rigid, depending on the joint's ability to move. A flexible joint may become more rigid as you age.

A Flexible Joint

You can straighten a flexible hammer toe with your fingers. Although they look painful, flexible hammer toes may not hurt.

A Rigid Joint

A rigid hammer toe cannot be moved, even with the fingers. Rigid joints may cause pain and distort foot movement. This may put extra stress on the ball of the foot, causing a callus (a corn on the bottom of the foot).

TREATING HAMMER TOES

If your symptoms are mild, changing shoes may be all the treatment you need. Using a splint or a pad to hold your toes straight also may help. Or try cushioning corns and calluses with felt padding. If your semitones are severe, surgery may be need. The type of procedure often depends on whether your toe joints are flexible or rigid.

Flexible Joints

To release a buckled joint, the tight tendon (often the bottom one) is cut and repositioned.

Rigid Joints

A piece of bone may need to be removed to help straighten a rigid toe. Two surgical examples are shown below. With either surgery, a pin must be used to hold the remaining bone in position during healing.

With fusion, the joint cartilage is removed. The toe bones heal as one longer bone.

With arthroplasty, part of the curled joint is cut away. The "gap" fills in with fibrous tissue.