Pain under big toe

I noticed the other day when I put pressure on the underneath of the big toe on my right foot it hurt and it still does. It feels like it is by the joint, it a sharp stabbing pain, it could even be the bone that hurts. It doesn't hurt to walk on it only when pressure is applied to it.

ANSWER
Hi,
Two things come to mind when we discuss pain under the big toe, especially in the joint area.
The first would be a tendonitis (inflammation of the tendon) of the tendon that allows the big toe to bend downward. It is known as the flexor hallucis longus tendon.
Things like doing a lot of walking or wearing very flimsy shoes like flip flops where the toe is over bending upwards, may stretch the tendon and thus cause it to become inflamed.
The second thing that comes to mind is the possibility of a small extra bone (accessory bone) that some people have in this same area. The bone is not true bone but is actually made of cartilage and so in many cases does not show up well on xray.
In these cases if you press around the area, most times you can actually feel the accessory bone and actually move it back and forth.
Your option here is to wait a while and see if the pain goes away on its own. It may also start to hurt when walking (as opposed to just pressing on it).
If you find that it does not go away or even gets worse, then you might be wise to see a foot specialist to find out exactly what it is and have some treatment rendered in an effort to rid yourself of the pain.

Marc Mitnick DPM
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