Foot pain: cheapest option for diagnosis?

edda

I have painful toe with a swollen joint and would like a diagnosis as to the cause.

Any idea whether I should go for a private consultation or chiropodist or sports injuries clinic? I'm looking for comparable prices for a 1st visit.

I do regular exercise and don't know what the problem is. My doctor is not interested - advising rest and no exercise until the pain goes away.

Not having used private facilities before, I wondered if anyone knew which would be the cheapest place to start?

weeneldo

Have you been back and told your GP that the pain isn't going away with rest and exercise? Generally the first bit of advice the GP gives is with the intent that if that bit of advice doesn't solve it, the patient should come back and say so that a different treatment route can be embarked upon. Another trip back to the doctor to let them know might save you a fair bit of cash!

jenniewb

If the pain lasts longer then 2 weeks (and has not faded or has gotten worse) you may find your GP has taken a sudden interest to your foot.
With muscular pains they generally go or fade quite a bit within 2 weeks, if they don't its then the real issue becomes more obvious.

I'd say wait. Yes you could spend a fortune on tests and fees for various specialists but if it all turns out to be a muscle tear you could end up quite a few £££ down and with nothing other to do then apply deep heat and rest.

If its getting in the say of your day to day life, maybe see a pharmasist at boots for some idea of where to go or products to try. Rest can really make a huge difference, its not always passing the buck so do try it if you can. Its only with rest that muscles can really repair any damage. If it is much worse (and trust me, muscle pains can be very painful!) you will need any inflammation to die down before you can do anything anyway.

Most consultants will charge upwards of £40. This is not for treatment, treatment costs more then this. It would be gutting for them to assess you, say what your GP has said and you to lose that £40 because you were not happy to wait.

edda

Thanks for the replies. The problem is over 3 months old and has swollen again over the last week. That's why I thought I'd do something about it.

Toothsmith

Have you tried rest & no exercise?

I just ask because sometimes with fitness fanatics, resting doesn't get done! You don't make it clear from your posts whether you have actually done that.

Exercise-induced muscle/joint injuries more often than not respond to RICE

(Rest, Ice, Compression, Elevation) Rest it, hold ice packs against it - quite hard to compress it, and have it up, to aid blood flow back up the limb.

If you really have rested it for a while, and it's not getting better, then I too would get back to the Doc.

edda

Ok - you've all convinced me. I'll make an appointment with the docs next week.

I have had about 3 weeks off from exercising and the pain did go away. This coincided with the warmer weather and I thought that it might have helped. But I would like a propoer diagnosis and hope that I can get a definitive answer this time.

I'm certainly not going to over-exercise now if it means I'm hobbling with a stick later in life!

Thanks everyone.