Your baby's feet are growing rapidly, and he (or she) may turn to you complaining of pain in their foot. Once you have discovered that your child's foot hurts, you need to know how to cope with this situation. Follow your doctor's advice and help your baby stop suffering from this type of pain.
Steps
Step 1. Find out what kind of foot pain your baby is suffering from
- Ask him if he accidentally fell and got a sprain. Try to find out exactly when the pain started and in what situation.
- Check your baby's shoes while he is wearing them. Shoes that are too small can cause pain.
- Try to check if the shoes are not tied too tightly. This can leave bruising and cause pain in the instep.
- Ask when they feel pain. Running on hard or uneven surfaces can cause microtrauma. Stress fractures, osteoarthritis, or plantar fasciitis can develop if the child has constantly put stress on a certain area of the foot.
Step 2. Take your child to the doctor when the pain is so acute that it interferes with his daily activities
- Answer the doctor's questions. If the child is old enough to understand the questions, allow them to answer them.
- Have your child undergo tests that the doctor prescribes. These may include an x-ray, bone scan, or MRI of the foot. The doctor should be able to make a diagnosis if the injury has caused a physical malformation.
Step 3. Follow your doctor's instructions for treating baby foot pain
- Rest your child's foot so that the inflammation and swelling begin to subside.
- Put ice on the baby's foot. Make sure you don't leave it there for more than 20 minutes.
- Bandage your baby's foot if your doctor prescribes it.
- Lift the baby's foot, making sure to place it in a higher position than his heart. This allows blood in the foot to drain towards the leg, resulting in less pain.
- Give your child an over-the-counter medicine, such as acetaminophen or a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug such as ibuprofen.
- Encourage your child to release physical energy in activities that allow them to not put weight on their foot. Cycling is a great choice in this regard.
Step 4. Throw away old shoes if your child's foot has grown
- Measure your child's foot correctly to make sure you are buying new shoes of the right size.
- Buy orthoses if your doctor diagnoses a situation that is causing your baby's foot pain. Make sure your child uses orthoses every time he wears shoes.
