Foot pain is extremely common, and it is NOT normal.  A variety of conditions can result in foot pain:

Arthritis can occur in your feet just as it can occur in other areas of your body, and it can be painful.  Patients can develop stiffness and/or pain in the big toe joint, which is termed hallux limitus or hallux rigidus depending on the severity.

Bone spurs commonly occur in the front of the feet (often near the big toe joint), and the middle of the feet, and these can be painful.

Pain can also occur in the ball of the foot from a variety of causes such as metatarsalgia, neuromas, stress fractures, or length discrepancies of the bones in the front of the foot.

Hammertoes, or contracted toes, can cause foot pain for many people.

Bunion deformities near the big toe joint, and Tailor’s bunion deformities near the baby toe can also be painful for many people, and often cause difficulty wearing shoes.  Many people with bunions or tailor’s bunions have pain with prolonged time on their feet as well.

Both flat feet (which is called pes planus) and high arched feet (which is called pes cavus) can result in foot pain.

Heel pain is extremely common, and can be caused by conditions such as plantar fasciitis/heel spur syndrome, a stress fracture, or Sever’s disease.

Ankle pain is also quite common, and has a variety of causes.

Gout can also cause severe pain in the foot, which some female patients describe as being “worse than childbirth.”  Fortunately, we can decrease the pain from gout immediately with our treatment regimen for this condition, and patients with gout walk out of the office feeling much better.

Systemic conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis (or RA) can also result in foot deformity and foot pain.