Possible broken toe - anything to do?

Maybe you could go get it checked out? I’m no doctor but I think that leaving it like that might make it worse.

I would see a doctor to get it set or relocated !(what is it called when a dislocation is reduced?). He doesn’t want to risk it healing at a weird angle. Can he move it to a better position?

If it wasn’t for the weird angle, I would say tape it up and go about his life. At the odd angle he better get it checked. It will make walking less painful in 20 years.

He did just move it to a better position. I gave him aspirin and an icepack. It’s fairly late here so I think we will wait until tomorrow re: doctor.

This might hurt a little, but you could try giving in a little tug to see if it will pop back into its socket (if it is dislocated).

Try to straighten it as best as you can (Yank hard and scream together with him) and tape it! Go buy the Frankenstein plastic strap on boot and stay off it for 5 weeks. I just saved you $785.00 in Dr fees.

You can “buddy tape” it to the adjacent toe. He probably should get it checked out though.

Doctor’s can’t really do anything for toes that you can’t do yourself, so tape it up and make sure he stays off it. DO go to the doctor if it turns black, because that means that marrow is seeping out (aka bad f***ing times).

@shilolo Should we buddy tape it tonight or wait til tomorrow? Is the icing a good thing to do?

Tape in now and ice 20 minutes on; 20 minutes off

Take Advil for pain if available and if no GI problems.

My bill is in the mail!

Don’t tape it too tight, it will probably swell tonight. Put a cotton ball(or part of one) in between the toes to give it a little room to expand.

There isn’t really a rush to buddy tape. Do what makes him most comfortable. You can look up how to do it online. As far as ice goes, there are no real studies on the effectiveness of ice, but I would recommend it. Lastly, the doctor’s visit is up to you, but is someone hurts themselves so badly that their toe is askew, there may also be a metatarsal (foot) fracture as well that would need a different treatment.

Thanks all and especially Dr. Shi. It seems to be straighter now and he can wiggle it. Will ice again tonight and call you in the morning, but I think it’s not broken.

I agree with @WestRiverrat

Oh, I just saw your post @janbb that’s good. We’ll hope for the best. I think you should tape it to the second toe to stabilize it for a week or so just in case.

@Cruiser, what’s the Frankenstein plastic strap-on boot?

I’ve broken my little toe twice. It sounds like a very minor injury, and it really is, but it wouldn’t hurt for him to get it x-rayed and then keep an eye on it. There’s not much they can do, both times what they had me do was basically use the toe next to it a sort of a splint, put a little cotton between the toes and tape them together until the broken toe heals. But the second time I broke the toe, the break was bad enough that the doctor told me that it if didn’t heal properly I would have to have surgery, to pin the broken bit back onto the toe. It really is a relatively minor injury, but you should keep an eye on it because if the break doesn’t heal properly it will cause problems down the road, maybe years down the road, but you only get two feet per lifetime. Though I know people who have broken all sorts of little bits of their bodies and are fine, so far.

@Jeruba It it a Ski-Boot style strap on Fiberglass “boot” that stabilizes the foot! YI got one when a 3,000 lb machine fell on my foot and a set of X-rays later the Doc said wear this…nothing we can do short of $3,000 plus surgery that will yield you a nice scar and not uch more benefit. I took the boot!

I broke a toe once—the second one on my left foot. It was just hanging down. I drove myself to the hospital, where they deadened it, straightened it with a yank, and taped it to hold in place. I wore an open-toed sandal for a week or so, iced it for a few days till the pain and swelling subsided. It healed well, and that was that. Not a pleasant experience but no worse than all the stubbed toes I’d had previously.

Oh, and I chopped up the coffee table I’d broken the toe on into a million tiny pieces. (Just kidding.)

I am so very sorry to hear that. This month must be break your toe(s) month. My friend just broke two of her toes in half! OUCH! Her Doctor taped them and as @Dr_Lawrence just said had her take Advil elevate her foot, cold compress.

@janbb @WestRiverrat has it right! I’ve broken almost every toe….tape it, and go on! Also, if the pain is bad, find some of old sneakers and cut out the toe!

Luckily, he woke up fine, in very little pain. Must have been temporarily dislocated? Very happy – thanks for all the help!

cool !

Oh, that’s good. Thanks for letting us know.

You’re welcome!