Question
Hi Dr. Schneider,

I am a 29 year old female runner and cyclist. Last week, Igot a new pair of running shoes - same size and model as usual, but a narrow instead of a regular width. I ran 7 miles last Saturday morning, and when I put on dress shoes to go out that night, I noticed some pain on top/outer edge of my left pinky toe. I put a band aid on it, as I thought I had a blister. A few days later, I took off the band aid and noticed a rather large lump on my pinky toe. The skin feels soft (not rough or calloused), but I feel something under the skin. It's painful, red and fairly prominent. I fear that it might be a corn. Is it possible to get a corn from one run in the wrong shoes?? I paint my toenails a lot, so I would have noticed if this was here before. The right side has some callus in a similar place, but nothing bulbous or raised like the left side; both my feet are narrow at the heel, but get wider by the toes (like triangles!).

Maybe I should return my shoes for the regular width, even though I didn't notice any pain during my run, or on subsequent runs?

I'm just really concerned because I am a runner, so I want to preserve my feet, and yet I work in the fashion industry, so I can't wear tennis shoes all day! How can I resolve this??

Thanks so much!

Answer
Hi Missy,
Running in or wearing too narrow a shoe can most certainly add pressure to the 5th toe and cause pain.  You may have formed a corn or could simply have some inflammation.  You may want to consider returning to the medium width shoe and use a lacing pattern that locks your heel in better.
Good luck!
All the best,
Andrew Schneider, DPM
http://tanglewoodfootspecialists.com
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