FWIW, aggressive icing (20 mins. on, 40 minutes off as many times a day as possible) has really helped. No more tingling or numbness. I'm also using a neuroma pad in my running shoes, though I'm only walking around in them. It seems to help as well.

I should be getting the new kicks any day now. I'll fit one with another pad and try it out.

Well, so far all is going very well I think. My next appointment with the Dr. is on the 27th and I am hoping that he will tell me to lose the crutches. I am allowed to bear partial weight on the foot and have been pretty good at following the instructions. I have however put down my full weight a few times and taken some steps like that and the only soreness I feel is in the stitch area. The Doc had removed about half of the material covering the foot at our last meet and that made me much more comfortable for sure. I imagine the stitches will be removed on the 27th. I am interested in how much covering he will leave next time. Since the operation I have had a fiberglass type form on my foot that runs down the back of the calf and under the foot - extending about 2" beyond the toes. After this is over I am going to hang onto the form and use it as a night splint, should work well with a couple of ace elastics. The soreness I was having under the ball of the foot turned out to be caused by the negative pressure from the drain line and tube. After he loosened up a stitch or two and then snatched the tube from the incision-the soreness was gone-he pushed very firmly on the ball and I only felt pressure. I also expected (from internet articles) that pretty much all my smaller toes would be numb, the are not numb. I have good sensation in all the toes and can only sense a little numbness on the bottom areas of the 3rd and 4th toes, and not really all that numbing so I am pleased about that. I am feeling very optimistic at this point about having put myself through what I considered a scarey situation-I am glad I made the choice to have the operation, I have all my hopes up that it remains this way. I am expecting to try getting a little slow time on the dreadmill either just before Christmas or the 1st week of the new year.
dag2000, I think you have a lot of things to try before stressing to much about having surgery in the near future. I also tried the icing and the pads many times and they just were not working for me. I think for one thing I did not realize soon enough that my shoes needed to be changed to a wider version. I was,am, so ignorant about any of this stuff. I just knew that I could only get about 2.5 into a walk and would find myself standing like a flemingo every 50 feet till I could get home. I finally bought a pair of 2E shoes and they helped a lot at the time. That lasted about a year and found no more relief from them and I went to 4E shoes and that is what I have been wearing for 3 years or so. I also now have to get shoes that are rate with an SL-2 Last instead of the normal shoe with a SL-1 last. The difference basically is the SL-2 shoe also has a taller toe area. So now we have wide and tall, much better. I also found most socks are too tight in the toe area. I have spent so much moola on shes and socks trying to have some relief that it is disgusting to me. Pretty much all the socks I find to purchase come fitting like size 9 or 10 to size 12. If it were not for the swollen/scarred neuroma between the toes most any ole sock would do would they not? So, I have many bags of socks stashed around the house. Maybe, just maybe now that the neuroma is gone I will ba able to wear regular socks again. I even have real loose knitted socks that are made for folks with diabetes and other such problems with "pressure ache' on the feet. I was not able to find anything of that nature that would come under wicking material-which would be nice. Some people I seen on this site have kind of scoffed at runners who would build up a "stash" of a particular shoe when they found one that they really liked. Well I did find one shoe that I LOVE that fits well with the orthotics that I have to wear AND has the 4E width & SL-2 last I need and I am thrilled to tell you that I have 6 pair set away at this time. If my recovery continues on the good path I will be picking up a few more pairs before they disappear through "upgrading". I can't afford to leave it to chance that an upgraded pair will be just as good.
I feel that anyone that is having issues with their feet regardless of the proble should see a Podiatrist if possible. I can tell you that I am on my 4th DPM and he has been wonderful in helping me with my foot problems. The other 3 DPM's were more distructive to me and caused me undo pain for months on end. Folks coolrunning have said over and over to find a Podiatrist that is either a runner or is sympathetic with runners - it is true - pick a runner to help you. My Doc runs and does at least 1 marathon a year.
Well, there it is.
I have run my yap to much to even go back for a spell check.
Richard

Hi motherof4,
Actually in my mind I thought Christmas was next Monday, not this Monday, sorry. The main reason for that is because I have my next appointment with the doc on the 27th and I willbe able to give a better update then. So, it will really be about 3 weeks after the surgery that I hope to begin a WALKING schedule on the dreadmill. I am still planning on doing that, it pretty much depends on what is on my foot when I leave the office Monday. I am pretty sure that he will remove the stitches and I am hoping that he will only put back a very small amount of bandage type thingy's. If he tells me I can start out on some walking I will for sure.
I sure can feel your pain and fears about this being done to your foot, it really is serious business. I was only 3 days out from the surgery and falling in and out of going through with the operation. I already had the pre operative appointment and discussed all that I could think of with him. Then the tought hit me, OMG, I wonder if I will be only his 1 or 2 or 3 or 4th person he has ever done this procedure on? So, I called his office and asked that he get back with me and a couple hours later he did. I told him that I was very concerned because I did not want to offend him or be offensive in any way but I needed to ask him a few morw questions because this is the only pair of feet I am ever going to be issued - can't take them back to Sears. He did not seem to mind at all answering whatever I needed to know to be more comfortable.
It turns out that after almost 25 years in Podiatry he has performed this type of sugery over 500 times and up to date with any new skills that have come along. I also wanted his opinion of doing a "decompression" operation instead of removal of the nerve. After all that I have been through in the last months and years I wanted it to be the final solution not the possible beginning of a long road that could end at the same end result.
I kind of have a hard time understanding why people would talk to you about the "horrible pain" involved in having this done. Have these folks had this operation so they can speak from experience? I liken the operaion to having a ver bad toothache. the tooth causing a great deal of pain, then removed. Once the tooth is removed isn't the source of the pain also removed? Wouldn't there just be sore skin and gum tissue left? I was given pain meds also and I think it is a good precaution because everyone has a different pain level. My Dr. was not supprised at all and said to me that the nerve is the where all the pain I have been having originates from and is also the little part that sends out pain or discomfort for any variety of reasons that the area is damaged or dinged by any outside source. When the entire nerve is removed there really isn't anything left in that area to send out pain, the vehicle is gone and all that is left is sore tissue from the incsion. I think the 3 months to running is just being a safe guide and there sure is nothing wrong with that. I will ask the doc again about the dreadmill when I see him but the last 2 times that I saw him and asked he said he did not see any reason why I could not expect to be using tha treadmill by the end of the month or at least the 1st week of the new year. If all goes well and I do start up I plan to begin as a beginer would because I have not been able to run since the Army 10 Miler on October 8th and that is a long time off. So when I start back in it will be walking, and when I can walk briskly for 1 hour without discomfort I will start mixing in a walk/run program for myself and the start the building up again for what might take till the fall to get back where I was. My only real running goal for the coming year is to be reay for the Army 10 Miler again in the fall, great race and I don't want to miss it. I will be so glad to be able to even get back to doing my little around the house chores that my sweet wifey has stuck with until I can.
If you would like to email me about this it would be okay, or we can continue on the site and I will fill in information as I roll along on recovery road.
barricwiley@verizon.net
I think you should ask your Dr. about how many times he/she has performed this kind of surgery, it could give you the kind of comfort and confidence that you need to have about getting this taken care of and behind you.
good thoughts for you,
Richard

I found this thread by doing a search on "ball of foot". Though I have never been diagnosed with Morton's Neuroma, my symptoms are pretty much the same as what I have read in this thread. Namely, a bruised feeling in the ball of my foot, as if a stone or sock fold was pressing on it. My second and third toe are also doing the "peace sign" thing.

This problem cropped up for me almost exactly 1 year ago. I have tried many things over the past year, including doing nothing and just trying to run thru it. Amazingly, I have not developed any correlated injuries as a result of trying to adjust my gait to avoid the pain. But it seems that if I don't solve this, that will inevitably happen.

My diagnosis, by two separate professionals has been capsulitis. As explained to me, this is basically inflammation and scarring in the joint capsule of my second toe. The first professional, a podiatrist who is also a triathlete, recommended some shoe inserts to relieve the pressure from the area, and a cortisone shot. The shoe inserts messed up my gait, and caused other problems so I had to discard them. The cortisone worked great but was only temporary. The positive effects lasted about two months, during which time I curtailed my running by approximately 50%. After that the pain returned.

The second professional, who I am still currently seeing, is a chiropractor. He agreed with the podiatrist that my problem is capsulitis in the joint of my second toe. His solution is a treatment called Active Release Technique (ART), which I have seen discussed in this forum for other overuse type injuries. To summarize, it consists of deep, soft tissue massage. This is not what you would normally think of when you think of massage. It can hurt to the point of being excruciating. The goal is to break up and eliminate the scarring, and restore full motion to the affected joint.

I have had four treatments (once weekly) and am holding out hope that this will be my final solution. So far I have noticed some improvement, but I can't yet say that this is going to do the trick.

My question is this...has anyone else been given this diagnosis of capsulitis? I have found precious little information, although both professionals have said that this is a common problem among runners. Maybe neuroma and capsulitis are synonyms? Also, has anyone else found relief in the use of ART for this problem?

I will keep you posted about my success (or lack thereof) with ART.

TWUPNY:

I've had the exact same experience. I had a bunionectomy in January of 2007. Healed fine and was doing good all summer. Was fitted for orthotics in early September. Then one day late September my foot started hurting really bad under the 2nd metatarsal in that left foot. Differential diagnosis is neuroma vs capsulitis vs bursitis. First we tried antiinflammatories, then 1 cortisone shot, then a 2nd one 4 weeks later. No help. I'm still battling with this as well. Truth be told I think my orthotics caused all of this. I ordered some inserts from mortonsfoot.com. They are posturdynamic inserts that lift the first metatarsal so it alleviates the pressure off the affected area. That makes it so I can at least get through a day of work. (I am a nurse and on my feet all day.) But, the pain and discomfort is still there. I'm at wits end and don't know what to do. Please let me know if the chiropractor helps. I will try anything. I finally convinced my podiatrist today to try something else. He gave me a strong course of Prednisone and said I can do an MRI if I want. So, that's my next step. I just can't take it anymore!!!! You're progress will be nice to hear. Please keep posting!

i have been diagnosed with metatarsalgia capsulitis........had 2 cortisone shots, podiatrist made me orthotics.....played with them for about 6-9 months making adjustments. could never get them comfortable in my running shoes which were a good pair of brooks.........$120...sent me back to therapy for 3rd time this time saying reason orthotics weren't comfortable was i had planatar faciatis......therapist gave me the 10 treatments ordered but basically just showed me how to stretch out better didn't help.........then posiatrist said maybe try wearing shoes for awhile........did that and they were comfortable but still have some toes pain.....he then decided to order another pair of orthotics whixch i am waiting for but it has been over a year i haven't been able ti run.................brand new treadmill gathering dust..............gets very frustrating..........seems like this specific problem is a **** shoot.........he told me i def. don't have mortons neuroma.........but also made it sound like at least that they could treat........

can anyone relate to this specific issue ?????

Hi nurse and Nailgun,

I can feel your pain. I am sooooo frustrated right now. I was diagnosed with a neuroma in April in my right foot. It got bad in July, and then we started treatments. In September I got a neuroma in my left foot and my doc immediately ordered orthotics. I have since had surgery on my right foot (about 2 1/2 weeks ago) and it seems to be healing. The problem is that the orthotics seem to have caused bursitis (which I think is just like capsulitis) on my fifth metatarsal in my left foot. I still also have the neuroma in that foot, but the bursitis is much worse. It is so enflamed that I can't even lie on my left side because of the pressure it puts on the side of my foot and underneath my foot. My doctor gave me a cortisone shot a week ago that has helped a little, but anytime I move I think I reinflame the tissue, joint, etc. I've stopped wearing the orthotics and we thought that would do the trick, but it really hasn't. I'm not sure what to do at this point. I have two very small children who are constantly on the go, which makes this even more difficult. Let me know if you discover any type of treatment for this capsulitis/ bursitis. We could probably start a new discussion thread, since what we are dealing with here really isn't the same as the neuroma.