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Back-Related Foot Pain

If you experience pain in your foot, the cause might not involve an injury to your foot. Foot pain can be back-related, especially if you are also experiencing pain in your lower back.

  1. Back-Related Foot Problems

    • Problems in your back can lead to problems in your feet. For example, spinal stenosis, a condition in which the space around the spinal cord narrows and pressure is placed on spinal nerves, might result in pressure being placed on nerves that affect your feet. Spinal stenosis can lead to foot-drop, the sensation that your feet slap down on the ground when you walk.

    Herniated Disc

    • According to the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, a herniated disc in the lumbar portion of your spine can result in the protruding portion of the disk putting pressure on the nerve root that leads to your leg and foot. This causes sciatica, characterized by pain that radiates from your back down your buttock and leg to your foot, according to MedlinePlus.com.

    Other Causes

    • Other back-related problems can cause foot pain through sciatica. It can be triggered through degenerative disc disease or by tumors in your back on or near the sciatic nerve, states MedlinePlus.com.

    Treatments

    • Your doctor can help back-related foot pain by treating the back problem causing it. Anti-inflammatory medication and physical therapy to strengthen your muscles that support your spine can help. Injections of steroid medication into your back or surgery are also treatment options.

    Considerations

    • The National Institutes of Health warn that if a back-related issue causes pain in your foot, you might also experience problems with moving your foot up or down.

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