Foot Problems question
I have been diagnosed with gout for a couple of years now. I am 53
years old, 6'2" and weigh 225. The diagnosis was originally a
result of the traditional pain in the beg toe. I guess since the
allopurinol keeps it in check, I kind of convince myself that I only
have "mild gout". I also take 100mg of Celebrex daily for arthritis
symptoms mostly in my hands and fingers. I used to be quite
athletic until about 3 or 4 years ago (having run road races and
marathons), and recently have begun to try to run again. I have
experienced the following:
The ball of one of my feet got very painful and felt as if it were
on fire. I had to stop running altogether until this symptom
subsided. An archpad in my orthodic shoe insert has helped a little
bit.
In the mornings and after sitting for long periods of time, the
bottoms (both ball and heel) of my feet feel extremely painful when
I get up (but normalize during the day if I walk a bit).
My question to you who are most knowledgeable in this area is:
My big toe isn't bothering me, but can I attribute the above
symptoms to gout or is this a result of arthitis or both? Also,
what are some different drugs to consider besides the Allopurinol
and Celebrex to help me be able to run more pain free? I would like
to run some suggestions by my Doctor to see what he thinks since
this is bothering me so much.
When I get those symptoms, I assume it is gout and I proceed as
though I am under attack.
I suspect that you have not been on allopurinol for very long and
that your system has not had enough time to flush out the excess uric
acid. At 225 you are not very much over weight, if any at all really,
and it will take time for the allopurinol to work.
You should not simply "push through" the pain either because you can
cause crippling damage to the joints involved if you do. I do the
same thing and it is usually a close call. If I can walk comfortably
with the shoe on I will go ahead and walk but when we do that we have
to be very careful. Especially when you run, your body tends to mask
out the pain so that while you are running you will not feel it and
that's when you might damage yourself permanently.
Double your intake of water, and wait it out while you keep taking
your allopurinol. You know, 53 is not 24 and perhaps you should
consider taking long, fast walks instead of running.