Ball of foot pain/plantar calluses

Metatarsal pads for relieving ball of foot pain and plantar callus on foot.

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What is a plantar callus?

Plantar calluses on the foot are very frequent skin lesions. When the skin is subjected to excessive pressure from the ground or the shoe, it reacts by increasing the production of cells. The resulting round-shape and yellowish area of thickened hard dead skin is called a callus. This protective shield forms at the points of highest pressure, usually under the ball of the foot (head of the metatarsals).

Symptoms and causes of metatarsalgia and calluses on foot

Ball of the foot pain, also called metatarsalgia, are often caused by prolonged and excessive pressure over a small area. This pressure may cause a lot of discomfort, difficulties walking and painful calluses.

Such stress can be related to some foot deformities like bunions or hammer toes for example. Moreover, wearing inappropriate footwear like narrow and small shoes or high heels can increase pain. Practicing certain sports which involve repeated steps or jumps can also cause pain. At last, the thick layer of fat that covers the ball of the foot wears out and becomes thinner with age. As a result, pressure increases over the prominent bones (metatarsal heads), what may make pain worse.

How to treat ball of foot pain and calluses?

To prevent and treat a plantar callus on foot, first choose appropriate shoes and wear metatarsal pads that relieve you while walking. If you have a painful callus on your foot, see a podiatrist who will remove it with special tools. Having also a daily foot care routine (dead skin removal, moisturising…) is very important to prevent or reduce calluses. Moreover, you can fight against overweight to decrease pressure under the forefoot. If you have a related deformity, your healthcare provider can recommend you to wear orthopaedic insoles.

The EPITACT^® solution to relieve painful calluses on foot

To improve your daily comfort, EPITACT^® has invented a silicone protection with a perfect balance between thinness and effectiveness. The metatarsal pads* relieve pain in the ball of your foot or metatarsalgia and help painful calluses on foot to disappear. These cushions can be worn in any types of shoes: you will forget you are wearing them throughout the day!

*These solutions are class I medical devices that bear the CE marking under this regulation. Carefully read the instructions before use.
Manufacturer: Millet Innovation. 05/2023

TRUE/FALSE

To get rid of a plantar callus, sand the dead skin and/or apply a balm.

FALSE! To eliminate a painful callus on your foot permanently, it is necessary to suppress its cause. Painful calluses are always located on area exposed to high pressure during walking. Therefore, it is necessary to apply with respect to the callus, a material that distributes the pressure. By protecting this area for at least a month, the defence reaction at the origin of the callus is suspended and ball of foot pain is relieved.

There is no difference between a corn and a callus on foot.

FALSE! Although their cause is identical (i.e. comes from a local and excessive pressure), a corn distinguishes from the callus by a whitish point with a black core in its centre. This point represents the area with highest pressure. Compared with a callus, a corn is also more painful.

Plantar calluses and ball of foot pain always reappear.

TRUE and FALSE! If you don’t treat their cause, calluses and ball of the foot pain will reappear. To avoid it, wearing adapted shoes is crucial. For example, narrow shoes or high heels increase pressures on the forefoot and help the formation of painful calluses. To counteract this process, EPITACT^® offers protections aiming to prevent and relieve plantar pain.