Metatarsalgia
First Online: 10 July 2022
Pilar Martinez de Albornoz & Manuel Monteagudo
Abstract
Most metatarsalgia has a mechanical origin.
Metatarsalgia as a mechanical pathology can develop in any of the three rockers of the gait, the most frequent being those generated during the third rocker.
The diagnosis of 90% of metatarsalgias is deduced from a clinical examination, which includes the patient’s visual walking, the clinical analysis of the foot, the location of the pain, and the cutaneous stigmas (keratosis) and from a bilateral foot weight-bearing X-ray.
The treatment will be aimed at correcting the cause that originated the problem. The prescription of insoles and the adaptation of the footwear are the first option of management, and, in case of limitation and pain in spite of the conservative treatment, surgery will be indicated. The objective of the surgery is to restore a correct metatarsal formula in all planes, by means of osteotomies to redistribute the loads and plantar pressures.
