Foot Drop: Causes, Symptoms, Risk Factors, Diagnosis and Treatment

Foot drop, also referred to as drop foot, is the inability to elevate the front of the foot. If you have a foot drop, it may cause the front of your foot to drag while you walk.

A disease is not a footdrop. It is a sign of a more serious anatomical, muscular, or neurological problem.

Foot drop could be temporary or it could be permanent. An ankle and foot brace may be necessary to support and stabilize the foot if you have foot drop.

Causes Of Foot Drop

Foot drop is caused by weakening or paralysis of the muscles that elevate the front of the foot. These are some potential reasons for foot drop:

• Nerve harm: The most common cause of foot drop is compression of a nerve in the leg that controls the muscles involved in elevating the foot. This nerve is known as the peroneal nerve. The nerve could be crushed by a severe knee injury. Injuries encountered during hip or knee replacement surgery might also lead to foot drop.
• Additionally, spinal "pinched nerve" damage to a nerve root can cause foot drop. Nerve issues, which are associated with foot drop, are made more likely by diabetes.
• Muscular or nerve problem: Numerous forms of muscular dystrophy, a genetic disorder that gradually weakens muscles, may have an impact on foot drop. The same is valid for several neurologic disorders such as polio and Charcot-Marie-Tooth illness.
• Disorders of the brain and spinal cord: Conditions like ALS, MS, or multiple sclerosis that affect the spinal cord or brain can cause foot drop.

Symptoms Of Foot Drop

Foot drop makes it difficult to elevate the front part of the foot, which may cause it to drag when you walk. A person who has foot drop may elevate their leg higher than normal when walking, as if they were climbing stairs, to help the foot clear the floor. Steppage gait is an unusual way to walk that can cause the foot to slam to the ground with each step. At times, the toes and the skin on the top of the foot can seem numb.

According to the cause, foot drop may affect either one or both feet.

Risk Factors of Foot Drop

The peroneal nerve controls the muscles that elevate the foot. This nerve runs close to the skin's surface on the side of the knee that is closest to the hand. You may be more prone to dropping your foot if you engage in activities that put a strain on this nerve. Examples include:

• Splayed legs: People who often cross their legs risk having a compressed peroneal nerve in the uppermost leg.
• Long stretches of kneeling: Foot drops can occur while performing tasks like picking strawberries or laying tile that require prolonged stooping or kneeling.
• There is a cast on the leg: Plaster casts that cover the ankle and end just below the knee can be used to compress the peroneal nerve.

Diagnosis Of Footdrop

Typically, physical tests are done to identify foot drop. When you walk, your doctor will watch you and search for any weakness in your leg muscles. Your doctor may also check for any numbness in your toes, top of your foot, and shin.

Scanning tests

A tumor resting against a nerve can occasionally cause foot drop. A bone growth in the spinal canal, a tumor or cyst pressing on a nerve in the knee or spine, or both, may be to blame. Imaging tests may be used to identify these types of problems.

• X-rays: A lump of soft tissue or a lesion in the bone that may be the cause of your symptoms can be found using simple X-rays, which use a low dosage of radiation.
• Ultrasound: This tool can indicate swelling on the nerve brought on by compression as well as detect cysts or tumors on the nerve. It functions by generating images of inside structures utilizing sound waves.
• An MRI: This combines X-ray images taken from various angles to provide cross-sectional views of the body's architecture.
• (MRI) imaging using magnetic resonance: This examination uses radio waves and a strong magnetic field to create extremely detailed images of the bones and soft tissues. It is very useful to use MRI to visualize soft tissue anomalies that may be pinching a nerve.
• The neurological system is tested
• Electromyography (EMG) and nerve conduction studies are methods for measuring electrical activity in the muscles and nerves. Although these tests can be painful, they are useful in identifying

Treatment Of Foot Drop

The type of treatment depends on the cause of foot drop. Foot drop may improve or perhaps fade away if the underlying cause is successfully treated. If the underlying cause is not treated, foot drop could become permanent.

Treatment options for foot drop include:

• Braces or Splints: A shoe-inside splint or an ankle and foot brace can be used to keep your foot in its normal posture.
• Physical therapy: Exercise can help you strengthen your leg muscles and maintain the mobility of your knee and ankle joints. Gait difficulties brought on by foot drop could be helped by these exercises. Exercises that stretch the muscles are essential to avoiding calf and heel tightness.
• Stimulating the nerves: In some cases, foot drop can be improved by activating the nerve that elevates the foot.
• Surgery: Depending on the cause and how recently your foot dropped, nerve surgery might be helpful. Your doctor can suggest surgery to improve function by relocating a functional tendon to another part of the foot if the foot drop has continued for a period.

To scale up your NEET PG preparation with the best-in-class video lectures, QBank, Mock Tests and more, download the PrepLadder App!

Download PrepLadder's best app for neet pg preparation for Android 

Download PrepLadder's best app for neet pg preparation for ios