Morton's Neuroma: Footwear and Pain Relief

A neuroma is a nerve in the ball of the foot, thickened and irritated from being squeezed between the long bones. It causes burning, tingling, or electric pain, often like standing on a pebble. It is not a tumor. Most people control it without surgery, and footwear does most of the work.

1 Daily care that actually helps

Wide toe box, heel under 1 inch
Metatarsal pad BEHIND the ball of the foot, not under it. Most people get this wrong
Take shoes off and massage the forefoot when it flares
Ice 15 to 20 minutes after activity
Ease off running and court sports while it settles
Custom orthotics help if you also have flat feet or high arches

2 What to expect, honestly

The thickened nerve does not shrink back. The goal is controlling symptoms, not reversing them
Good news: 60 to 80 percent never need surgery
A cortisone injection reliably helps short term, peaking at 1 week to 3 months
But it lasts in only about 1 in 3 patients, and injections are limited to 2 or 3 a year
Narrow or heeled shoes are for short occasions, not all-day wear

Talk to a podiatrist if:

Pain limits your walking, work, or exercise
Burning, tingling, or numbness in the toes persists more than a few weeks
Wider shoes and a metatarsal pad have not helped after 4 to 6 weeks
Numbness is becoming constant rather than coming and going
You are getting the same pain in more than one spot, or in both feet
You have diabetes or known nerve disease and develop new forefoot symptoms

If conservative care is not enough

Cortisone injection: calms irritation around the nerve, and helps confirm the diagnosis
Alcohol sclerosing injections, cryoneurolysis, or radiofrequency ablation for chronic cases
Surgery is considered only after 6 to 12 months of failed conservative care
Removing the nerve segment reliably relieves pain but leaves a small numb patch between the toes