Facebook Pixel
EmpowHER Guest
Q: 

Not sure if this is a corn on my big toe or what it is?

By Anonymous July 2, 2017 - 7:30pm
 
Rate This

I have been treating it like a corn, but cannot get rid of it. What should I do if I need to relieve the pain before tomorrow?

Add a Comment1 Comments

Guide

Hello Anonymous,

Welcome to EmpowHER. Thank you for reaching out to our community for help.

Without seeing this, I cannot say if it is a corn. Since you want relief today, consider calling and speaking with your primary care physician, who can look at it.

Corns generally occur at pressure points, typically the bottom of the feet and the sides of toes. They can be painful.

A hard corn is a small patch of thickened, dead skin with a central core. A soft corn has a much thinner surface and usually occurs between the 4th and 5th toes. A seed corn is a tiny, discrete callous that can be very tender if it's on a weight-bearing part of the foot. Seed corns tend to occur on the bottom of the feet, and some doctors believe this condition is caused by plugged sweat ducts.

Many products are available for use as home remedies. These products all share the same active ingredient -- salicylic acid, the ingredient used in over-the-counter wart-removal products.

Salicylic acid is a keratolytic, which means it dissolves the protein (keratin) that makes up most of both the corn and the thick layer of dead skin which often tops it.

It generally is recommended that salicylic acid not be used by people with diabetes or when there is frail skin or poor circulation (because of concern about how the skin can heal). In these situations, application of salicylic acid can potentially lead to ulcer formation on the skin.

Regards,
Maryann

July 3, 2017 - 6:35am
Image CAPTCHA
Enter the characters shown in the image.
By submitting this form, you agree to EmpowHER's terms of service and privacy policy
Add a Comment

All user-generated information on this site is the opinion of its author only and is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment for any medical conditions. Members and guests are responsible for their own posts and the potential consequences of those posts detailed in our Terms of Service.

Tags:

Corns

Get Email Updates

Related Topics

Corns Guide

Have a question? We're here to help. Ask the Community.

ASK

Health Newsletter

Receive the latest and greatest in women's health and wellness from EmpowHER - for free!