Foot leg pain

[jasdig21]

I am having all sorts of pain in my foot and leg and can't seem to get a diagnosis.  So far, I've seen two podiatrists, neurologst, PCP, and will see an orthopedic surgeon in about a month.  Last year I rolled over my big toe with a pallet jack that had a pallet on it at an old job.  Well at the time it didn't break my foot or cause any bruising or any type of problem that required medical attention so I let it go.  I also had a really bad ingrown toenail in the same big toe taken out a few months ago.  Well, for a few months now I've been having pain in my foot that's radiating up my leg.  More specifically, I'm not showing any physical outside symptoms except that my toe is a little swollen and purplish.  All the tests I've had done so far including an x-ray, an mri and an emg and nerve conduction study have came back normal.  Except the mri showed I had some edema.  As far as symptoms, my toe feels stiff, looks a little swollen and darker red/purple, the top of my toe is tender when touching it hard enough, sensitive on bottom of toe when walking, standing, tingling, stinging, burning in toe, some kind of weird tense ache at the very top center of my foot before my leg starts, random aches and pains in leg, lots of twitching in foot and leg and foot feels sort of swollen when wearing shoes.  I already asked my PCP if the pain was circulation related and he said no but I'm still questioning this because even though the bone in my foot was not fractured maybe the soft tissue or veins/arteries could have been damaged.  The MRI like I said was normal except for some edema, so does edema cause this much pain.  The only time I get relief is when im laying down or taking a hot bath.  And other than my big toe being somewhat swollen and kinda dark red/purplish I don't really have any outside physical symptoms.  The podiatrists that I've seen said my problem is nerve damage but after I saw the neurologist he said the nerve function is fine.  So, I'm wondering if the nerves in my foot are not showing up on the tests and may need surgery to correct whatever is wrong in order to be free from pain.  He told me the nerves in your toes and feet are rather small so they might not show up on an mri.  Is an orthopedic surgeon the best specialist to see or maybe a vascular surgeon.  If the nerve in my foot is damaged and needs to be repaired but if it's not showing up on tests how are they going to know where the pain is coming from unless the surgically open up the top of my toe and foot to see what's going on and if the nerve can be repaired or if it needs cortisone injections or removal.  I'm really scared because I thought I was going to have my foot amputated but whenever I mention that to any doctor they think I'm being ridiculous but at this point I don't know what to do because these random pain killers I've been given are the only form of treatment I've received and are not working.  If a neurologist can't identify nerve damage such as a neuroma in my foot they wont do surgery I'm sure.  So who do I need to see to get this problem identified and corrected?  Thank you

[maggie766]

i have pain in my heel on the left side and now it is going up my leg what can it be

[kerry698]

i got stabbed in my left leg 3weeks ago now i cant feel my ankle or side off my leg or the top off my left foot also my big toe is so sore and its burning and sensitive to touch could it be nerve damage

[Tuckamore]

Hi Jasdig,

Welcome to MedHelp. We are glad you found us. I'm sorry I am late answering your post. It is a holiday weekend and answers to posts may be a little slow till Tuesday.

You certainly have a complicated problem. All your tests are negative? Well it is my guess they are missing something. And possibly not there fault, as you stated it may be some tiny nerves but tiny nerves can cause big pain. Did you have an MRI with contrast? If not that is more definitive.

Tissue damage, myofascial pain can and does cause pain. Of course edema means swelling and when you have swelling in a part you have pressure on the nerves, muscles and all the "parts."   Removal of a toe nail can leave lingering pain. It may be when you put all the trauma together you are left with a painful toe/foot.

I would try to manage the pain for another month and if it does not subside I would than start with a different set of specialists. Sometimes a new set of eyes and time will give a better picture and provide a definitive diagnosis.

Those are my suggestions and I'm sure others will post with their ideas and suggestions. Keep us posted and let us know how you are doing. I hope you are able to find the reasons for you pain. Take care, Tuck