Morton's Neuroma Diagnosis

Neuroma is the thickening of the nerve tissue.The nerve cell growth is non-cancerous.Any part of the body could be affected by the enlargement of the nerve.One of the most common neuroma is Morton's neuroma.Since the thickening is around a nerve at the base of the toes between the third and fourth toes, it is also known as inter-metatarsal neuroma.The result of the compression and irritation of the nerve is Morton's neuroma. This is more common to women than in men.This may be due to the confining shoes worn by women.If this foot problem could be early diagnosed, invasive treatments or surgery could be prevented.

The patient will feel a localized pain in the inter-space between the third and fourth toe in Morton's neuroma.The pain could be described as sharp or dull. Symptoms experienced by the patient includes burning pain in the ball of foot, numbness in the toes, and crampingAside from the wearing of high-heeled and tapered toe box shoes, people with foot deformities such as flat feet, bunions, hammertoes, or more flexible feet are at higher risk of developing Morton's neuroma.Morton's neuroma can be caused by activities such as racquet sports and running and injury or trauma to the area.

Accurate diagnosis can successfully help in treating Morton's neuroma.To diagnose the foot problem the podiatrist will ask the patient about the symptoms and will examine the foot comprehensively.Thorough examination of the foot includes palpating the area to elicit pain and applying pressure in the spaces between the toes to feel the neuroma. He will feel for signs of stress fractures.

Mulder's sign will be checked by the podiatrist.An audible click that occurs when the affected interspace is palpated with one hand and at the same time squeezing the entire foot with the other hand is Mulder's sign.Many cases of Morton's neuroma are diagnosed because of Mulder's sign

The podiatrist will request for an x-ray on the affected area to make certain that there is no fracture.An x-ray can be used to check on the joints and bone density, thereby ruling out osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. The podiatrist will rule out the possibility that the compression is caused by a tumor by conducting an MRI.An MRI will also determine the size of the neuroma and the best treatment for it.