“But, some people have a deformity of the joint like clubbed feet, where the foot is turned towards the inside part of the body due to a deformity of the body and the ligaments; while some people have deformities on their foot itself.

“When people have such deformities, there are two issues — they need to look at what is causing it, as many of them can be remedied. The second one is that we need to look at the consequences of having such deformities.

“For example, some of the abnormalities of the foot could be due to disease condition like congenital problems and some people have acquired problems, perhaps as a result of an injury on the foot.

“Some people have diabetes mellitus and one of the early signs of diabetes foot is abnormal feet and bony prominences. We call that Charcot arthropathy.

“Some people may have suffered from a fracture or an injury that was not properly taken care of, maybe they went to a traditional cure home where they weren’t properly taken care of; all those things are potential causes. The consequences of it are what is more important,” Sodipo said.

The physician said people who have abnormal bony prominences are prone to having recurrent pain.

“The foot may not be in a normal position, if it is that the bone is unnecessarily prominent, it could be touching another layer and you could be having pain.

“Another thing is that they tend to develop osteoarthritis early. You see people at a young age having challenges like osteoarthritis, recurrent pain and they are wondering what the problem is but that is another potential consequence of that.

“Some people, if they are not careful, it could predispose them to have infections and subsequently, they could lose that limb,” he said.

The doctor noted that when any form of abnormality in the foot or toes is noticed, it is advisable to see a healthcare practitioner in order to prevent long-term consequences.

“What we advise is that once people notice any abnormality, they should present to the hospital.

“A lot of time, people just leave it; especially for children, assuming that the child will outgrow it, and unfortunately, if it is not remedied early, some of those things become permanent or affect the joint permanently.

“Another common one we see is rheumatoid arthritis, which is a form of autoimmune problem where the body is fighting against itself and causing abnormality in the joint.

“So, when you notice any form of abnormality in the foot or toes, no matter how old or young, the person should try to see a healthcare practitioner for help and prevent it from leading to long-term consequences,” he said.

The physician explained that many factors are responsible for the colour of the toenails but a lot of time, it could indicate a local problem or a systemic problem.

He said other general medical conditions like cardiovascular or renal problems can also manifest on the feet.

“One of the common causes of the colour of the toenails is fungal infection, which we call tinea unguium or onychomycosis.

“People tend to have fungal infection of the toenail especially those that wear shoes all the time or that have some predisposition or older people that walk in the water.

“It could also be some systemic problems that involve the respiratory system, cardiovascular system, or the renal or the liver.

“People can develop an abnormal shape of the nails, which is clubbing.

“Most important thing is that for people that notice this, they need to visit their healthcare practitioners for an examination to be carried out and decisions can be taken on what to do next,” Sodipo added.

source: PunchHealthwise