Skincare

Painful bump on bottom of foot: 16 Causes and 9 Remedies

Painful bump on bottom of foot can make walking difficult and disturb our daily life activities. Let’s learn the causes and remedies of this condition.

In olden days individuals travelled extensively, but on foot.  Nowadays there are so many modes of transport that you need not trouble your feet at all!

Even so, we need to move from room to room, climb steps, exercise and engage in a movement where the feet play an important part in our daily lives.

A Painful Bump on Bottom of Foot:

painful bump on bottom of foot
Painful bump on bottom of foot
Image source: huffingtonpost.com

Feet thus become a very important part of our body.  They carry the whole weight of our body on their heels and soles!   So, a painful bump on bottom of foot is a cause of concern for any individual.

Some of the Characteristics of a painful bump on bottom of foot are:

  • Could be in the form of trauma, peeling skin, tumor or infection.
  • Painful most of the times but sometimes painless
  • Redness, swelling in the affected area
  • Few bumps grow in size

16 Causes for Painful Bump on Bottom of Foot:

Plantar warts or Plantar Verruca:

Plantar warts appear on heel – the ball of your foot.  Plantar warts can become callus if the pressure is continuous.  This unique condition is due to the human papillomavirus (HPV), which enters the foot through cuts, breaks in the skin or weak/soft parts of the skin.

Some characteristics of Plantar Wart are:

  • Black colored dots in the wart known as capillary budding
  • Breaks in skin line
  • Painful when you squeeze them but do not cause pain when walking or standing
  • They go away in few days
Plantar fibroma:

Plantar fibroma occurs in arches of the foot and grows in tissue plantar fascia. It is in the form of small bumps on bottom of foot and is not malignant. Individuals affected by this condition, experience great pain.

Foot Blisters:

Foot blisters look like bubbles or painful lump on bottom of foot under the skin.  They occur due to friction created by two layers of skin come in contact with each other.

Corns:

Corns crop up due to bunions, poorly fitting shoes and Hammer’s toes.  Your foot develops rounded spots of thick skins in the sole called corns.  They are formed by our immune system to prevent blistering of feet.  Corns are usually painless and go away in few days.

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Corn Plasters are the best options to get relief from corns. In case it becomes a serious problem, doctors may recommend surgery

Calluses:

Calluses form due to friction/stress caused by tight shoes on a daily basis. It mostly occurs in individuals whose job involves standing for long hours.  Corns and calluses can lead to swelling and redness.

These foot blisters may develop into bacterial infection like impetigo or cellulitis if left unaffected.

Flat foot and feet with high arches:

Flat Foot or Pes Planus is a condition where the sole is touching the ground completely. It can be due to rheumatoid arthritis or injury.  This causes several problems like small painful bump on bottom of foot.

Pes cavus is another condition where the foot has a high arch.  It can cause pain in the heel and ball of your foot or create calluses. Pes cavus occurs in people with people suffering from neurology disorders like cerebral palsy and Charcot-Marie Tooth (CMT)

In a normal foot, the foot arch is flat during walking.  Thus your feet adapts to any terrain that you are walking in.  The arch in your foot begins to rise in terrains when the leg is perpendicular to the ground.  The foot is locked in position to support your body weight to move forward.

In Pes Planus condition, the foot is not locked.  It remains loose, causing severe strain to the soles of the feet. In Pes Cavus, condition the foot remains locked and is not flexible and walking becomes like pounding.

Bumps at the bottom of the big toe:

Sometimes the big toe’s movement seems restricted during walking.  You will note that the toe cannot bend upward at all.  It is forced downward at all times. The pressure that is built at the bottom causes the bump.

To check if you have his problem stand on a flat surface and ask somebody to move your toe up and down.  In case there is a restriction of movement then this is the reason for the painful bump on bottom of foot in the big toe area

Bony problems:

A mal-alignment of the big bone below the toe can cause a painful bump on bottom of foot.  Malalignment causes uneven distribution of body weight while the feet are moving. Some areas face excessive pressure making the skin in that area thick.  Thick skin is also called callus.

This problem can become very severe for people with diabetes, and they have to monitor such lumps and bumps carefully.

Athlete’s foot:

Athlete’s foot is a common problem faced by individuals, especially athletes. Also called Tinea Pedis, this condition is a result of fungus infection on the skin of your feet.  There are two types of Athlete’s foot – Acute and Chronic.

In Acute Athletic foot condition, the arches of the feet are full of blisters filled with yellow fluid.  The symptoms of this condition include redness, burning sensation or peeling of skin.

In the chronic version of Athlete’s foot, the skin on the underside of the foot becomes scaly and red

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Heel spurs:

Heel spurs are calcium deposits that create extra bone protrusion under the heel bone.  This can be up to half an inch.  This may cause a plantar fascitis painful band of tissue under the bottom of the foot.

Stone Bruise:

Stone Bruise or Metatarsalgia occurs in the balls of your feet.  This is a result of high impact exercise or poorly fitting footwear.  The sole between your foot arch and toes becomes painful or numb as if you have stepped on a stone.

Resting or applying ice to the affected area can help solve this problem.

Motor’s neuroma:

Painful bump on bottom of foot can also be caused due to a thickness of tissue around a nerve located at the ball of your foot or between arch and toes.

Diabetic neuropathy:

Diabetic patients should monitor their feet regularly.  They have a risk of incurring diabetic neuropathy.  Here nerves are damaged because of high blood sugar.

These patients may experience the tingling pain of pins or needles in the bottom of your foot. Sometimes the foot becomes numb even when walking and you do not experience sensation in that area.

Psoriasis:

Psoriasis is a skin ailment that occurs in any part of the body including elbow, scalp, knees or lumbosacral region.  There are chances of its occurring in your feet and becoming a painful bump on bottom of foot.

While one form of Psoriasis can cause thickening and yellowing of the skin, another variety causes bumps filled with fluid in the arch, sole of sides of your feet.  Symptoms of this condition under your feet include itchiness and burning pain and difficulties during standing and walking.

Diabetic ulcer:

If diabetic patients experience a blister or crack in the skin underneath their foot, it is called diabetic ulcer.

As skin acts as a shield against infectious germs damage may cause severe harm. When the skin layer is affected, all types of bacteria, fungi and virus enter through this gap easily.

Diabetic ulcers have to be given utmost attention as Infection occurs and may spread through the whole body. It could even cause harm to bones, creating deep abscess in the skeletal system.   Surgery is advised depending on the severity of this painful bump on bottom of foot in this case.

Skin Cancer:

Skin cancer rarely affects your foot – only 3% to 15% occurrences have been reported so far.

Diagnosis is of course very difficult. The cause of Skin cancer is exposure of skin to the sun.  But as shoes and slippers always cover our feet, we may not suspect it.  Cancer growths are often confused with other bumps and blisters.

However, if you find that the sole bumps or the area around it are pigmented or discolored, go to the doctor immediately as this could be a symptom of skin cancer.

Diagnosis of painful Bump on bottom of foot:

Most skin bumps are harmless and go away on their own. But few remain and cause inconvenience or severe pain.  For curing these, you need to visit the doctor at once.  The doctors will ascertain the cause and the type of painful bump on bottom of foot using various methods:

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Physical examination:

Gait analysis will be conducted to check reason especially for athletes to avoid frequent occurrence of such blisters

Once the doctors ascertain the cause, they may prescribe medicine or suggest surgery as per the severity of the painful bump on bottom of foot.

Remedies for painful bump on bottom of foot:

A painful bump on bottom of foot can be of great inconvenience and hampering day to day activities.  Here are some remedies that can help cure these bumps and blisters:

Protective  padding for corns and calluses:

Protective padding is stuck around the corns, calluses or foot area.  You can use padding like mole skin, a felt material.  It can be cut to appropriate size and placed to cushion your feet.

Though padding does not cure corns or calluses, the pressure in the area will be highly reduced.  As soon as pressure is reduced your pain on bottom of feet also decreases

Trimming corns calluses thorough surgery:

A podiatrist is qualified foot surgeon.   He will trim down the corn using a scalpel to reduced pressure on the nearby tissues.  This is done in one or many sittings.

A warning! Never try this job yourself as it may lead to disastrous results.

Foot surgery:

In case the painful bump on bottom of foot is due to deformation of toe bones, then the doctors can operate on it to straighten or cut it to length.

Use of  salicylic acid:

Some people go for chemical treatments.  First, the feet are placed in warm water to make it soft.  Then the dead tissues are removed by using pumice stones.

Salicylic acid is available in many forms as a liquid, plaster or pad.  When you place them on your feet the protein in the bump dissolves, and the bump can easily be trimmed away. This procedure should not be used by people with diabetes or people with blood-related problems.

Shoe inserts:

Soft shoe inserts can cushion painful corns and calluses and distribute the weight of your body away from the damaged part of the foot.

Medications:

There are various topical Antifungal medications or corticosteroids available that can be applied when affected by Athlete’s foot.  Sometimes doctors may suggest oral antifungal medicine to recover faster.

Patients who have psoriasis under the feet region are given corticosteroid tubes for topical application.  Sometimes immunosuppressant oral medicines and injections used to control pain.

Foot cream powders containing chemicals like Clotrimazole, Terbinafine, Tolnaftate and miconazole can also help provide relief for a painful bump on bottom of foot.

Lifestyle remedies:

Some daily practices can help in the long-term cure of health problems like a painful bump of foot.

Wearing good-fitting shoes:

Tight fitting shoes are the main cause of corns and calluses.  Since shoes are worn to prevent rubbing of feet against various surfaces, it is better to use large ones which also support your feet.

Avoid heels:

High Heels causes severe feet bone problems.  Bones can be deformed causing painful bumps on bottom of your feet.

Painful Bump on bottom of foot is a common problem.  While there are various remedies available, maintenance and wearing of well-fitting shoes are the only long-term solutions.

References:
  1. https://www.healthline.com/health/foot-problems#common-conditions
  2. https://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/ss/slideshow-common-foot-problems
  3. http://www.podiatrynetwork.com/common-disorders/149-lumps-and-bumps-on-the-bottom-of-the-foot
  4. https://www.everydayhealth.com/foot-health-pictures/common-foot-problems.aspx
  5. https://reference.medscape.com/features/slideshow/common-foot-disorders#page=2
  6. https://myhealth.alberta.ca/Health/pages/conditions.aspx?hwid=ug2410
  7. https://patient.info/health/corns-and-calluses 

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