I have seen a podiatrist & a board-certified pedorthists for my Neuromas. I have had 3 cortisone shots (in each foot) before custom orthotics were created.
The Neuromas have healed considerably. I recommend anyone with Neuromas be fitted orthotics by a pedorthist . The difference is incredible.
HOWEVER, my right foot, which of coiurse is the foot you drive with (unless you're driving a manual transmission) is most painful when driving.
I have orthotics, wide shoes, and yet it is STILL painful. Here's the WEIRD part..
If I take my shoe off, the pain goes away, well, almost.
So, how crazy is this? It hurts with the padded orthotic, but when I drive with no padding, minus a sock, it's nearly pain free.
Anybody else have similar problems?
I am seeing my podiatrist in a week, and just had the orthotics realigned because I had worn them down from running so hard. It's still to soon to tell if the new pair will help the right Neuroma calm down.

Dear Neuroma
Tight shoes actually aggrevate neuroma symptoms. I hope that the orthotics help to continue to provide relief of your symptoms.

Good-luck and thank-you for contacting foot.com
SBarlizo, DPM, C Ped
foot.com expert

If you have Mortons neuroma orthotics usually won´t help. If not cort-shots are efficient the only solution is surgery - excision of the nerve.!

The recomandation of surgery with a attached is very concerning.

If you are less pain without the shoe then the shoe you are wearing are a problem for that activity.

You might need a stiffer sole shoe.

Look at the way you pess the peddals with and without shoes does that change also.

Maby try someting like a "Croc" slip on shoe while driving.

All in all if you are almost pain free barefoot then unless you find something better I would have to recomend go with less pain.

Always surgery as a last resort because surgery can make things worse or create no impovement or only have temporary success no matter how many are attached to the advice. Be an informed consumer you make the choice because you will have live with results surgery has it successes and failure.

Be well

I know you said you have wide shoes. Obviously they are not wide enough.

Neuromas are made worse by tight shoes. A shoe that you feel is "wide", may not be.

As far as orthotics are concerned, there are LOTS of bad ones out there. An orthotic must have something on it that specifically addresses your neuroma, in a shoe that puts NO pressure on your foot.


go to this thread -----> http://www.foot.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=781

I THINK I HAVE GOT MORTONS NEUROMA I HAVE BEEN USING THREE PEDALS A DAY AT WORK ALL DAY LONG ON PRESSES I GET NUMBNESS & TINGLING & THROBBING AT THE BASE OF MY TOES AT THE BACK OF MY FOOT I WEAR SAFETY SHOES WHICH I HAVE BEEN TOLD THEY ARE NO GOOD FOR YOUR FEET I HAVE BEEN ON HOLIDAY FROM WORK FOR 2 WEEKS WHICH I THOUGHT WOULD DO MY FEET GOOD BUT IF I STAND TOO LONG OR WALK A WHILE I AM IN AGONY I FEEL LIKE MY FEET ARE TRYING TO CURL UP IN MY SHOES I AM DUE TO SEE MY DOCTOR TOMORROW I WILL LET YOU ALL KNOW HOW I GO ON

Make sure your safety shoes are the correct size foe your foot. The next thing that might be nessisary is add a carbon plate to stiffen your shoe.

The safety shoe need to be the corect size length and width your toes need to be able to move freely.

Hope thing good well.
Get better soon

Dear Tenalady3
Usually a Morton's neuroma causes numbness, tingling or burning pain classically between the third and fourth toes. The symptoms are usually aggrevated by tight shoe gear and sometimes repetitive activity/trauma. The treatment involves wearing proper shoe gear, orthotics with a morton's pad, anti-inflammatory medication, physical therapy, injection therapy and/or surgical excision. There are a number of treatment options, however, the combination depends on the patient, past and present treatment, severity of sypmtoms, age, activity level etc..etc..The first step is to see the doctor for an evaluation.

Good-luck and thank-you for contacting foot.com,
SBarlizo, DPM, C Ped
foot.com expert

I'm speaking from personal experience with Mortons Neuroma. I can't tell you how many times I had to leave the grocery store - with tears running down my cheeks - after filling my cart, because my feet hurt too bad to stand in line! I have had cortisone shots, worn wide shoes, had my podiatrist put metatarsal pads in my shoes - which helped, as long as I wore that pair of shoes.

Then I became a C.Ped, and figured out what actually worked, for me at least. A prefabricated orthotic with a metatarsal "lift" or bump.
I wear a couple of different ones: one that actually massages the plantar surface of the foot, which builds strength and flexibility in the plantar facia and improves circulation, and because that one doesn't fit in sandals and dressy shoes, I have a smaller one that I wear when wearing those shoes.

Immediate relief. I still have the Neuroma....I can feel it when I'm standing barefoot in the shower. But I can walk the Chicago airport. And the Dallas Airport. And the Detroit airport. Etc.

Incidentally, even if your shoes are wide enough, if there is not sufficient cushioning between you and the pavement you will feel pressure on the metatarsal heads.

thanks for your reply i went to my doctor who said it was a combination of 3 things the safety shoes which i am wearing the job i am doing by pressing pedals all day & standing & my toes are slightly bent forward so all the pressure is on the nerve at the base of my toes so i need to get special shoes made & insoles where do i get the correct insoles from do i order on line or do you get them from any chemist

Dear Tenalady3
There are a number of excellent products on the foot.com website. I would recommend that you go to a retailer in your neighborhood who may help you find appropriate shoes and possibly fit you with a Lynco orthotic. There are Lyncos with metatrsal peds but I don't believe that there is one with a Morton's Plug. Check back with your doctor to see if you truly have a Morton's neuroma. In the meantime you can browse through the website to see what foot.com has to offer.

Good-luck and thank-you for contacting foot.com
Sbarlizo, DPM, C Ped
foot.com expert

I thought I'd share this. My physical therapist showed me a way to tape my foot using this stretchy Kinesio Tape, and it takes pressure off of the ball of the foot. when my foot was really bothering me, i'd wear the tape all the time, and change it about every 4 days. Now I just tape my foot before I exercise, and no more pain and swelling in the foot!