Should I just ignore it? Broken?

[kis95]

Yesterday I was chasing after one of my kids, and tripped and fell over a tree root. I was okay, other than a slightly skinned knee. The tip of my toe hurt a bit too, where I hit it on the tree root. Not the whole tip; just the upper, right corner above the nail.

I went home and had a nap. When I got up, I realized that my entire toe now hurt, and was swollen. Not where I initially hit it (the tip), but down the entire length, starting below the nail. It's bruised some as well, mainly in the middle of my toe (along the top), where it's the most tender. I can't really bend it, and walking is painful.

I know there's not much they can do for a broken toe, so I haven't bothered having it looked at. What I'm wondering is, if I can tolerate walking on it and not resting it, can I really do further damage, or will it just slow the healing down? I ask this because I have three wee-ones, six and under. My husband works during the day, and there's no way I can just sit down and relax. As I said, it hurts to walk, but it's not impossible. I just want to make sure I'm not really going to damage myself by working through it.

Also, does anyone know why the part of the toe that I hit doesn't hurt, while the part I described does? That just seemed odd to me. Also, one of the kids stepped on it this morning (and yes, I just about vomited). When he did, there was a kind of 'pop' sensation inside the toe. What could that have been?

Thanks in advance,
Kis

[Heidi]

Hi
I think you should go for an X-ray. If there is a fracture what they would probably do is put you in a walking boot which means you wouldn't have to stay off your feet completely, but it would protect the bones whilst they heal.
Not resting could result in the bones healing out of alignment which could result in problems later on.
The fact that it doesn't actaully hurt on the area you hit but it does lower down makes me think it is more likely a fracture. The forces may have been transmitted down the bone.
Alternatively it could be damage to the joint at the toe. The only way to know for sure is an x-ray.
More info here: http://www.sportsinjuryclinic.net/cybertherapist/front/foot/broken_toe.php

[Joker3000]

Hi Kiss take a lesson from me and don't put it off!!!!! Got to a chiropractor and have he or she look at it and then get an x-ray. If it hurts to walk on it it's because it's jammed and if it starts to effect your walking then you are really in trouble. Get your chiropractor or MD to pull it back to normal this can hurt a bit but worth it.

Then you might want to look into Active release technique for getting rid of scar tissue and returning the toe to normal. You might also want to see a podiatrist and have him make you some shoe inserts.

I put off getting all this done and now I am stuck in a real mess to say the least so don't put it off!!!!! Do it today!!!

[Sole Man]

Yikes, sounds like it's fractured alright. Don't ignore it whatever else you do.