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The response to the question below was authored by Marc Mitnick DPM

itching in little toes when feet get warm at bedtime

by jim
(coventry u/k)

My feet are fine during the day but when i go to bed at night my little toes start to itch, the rest of my feet are fine. The itching feels like small electric shocks which after a while shoot down the side of my feet. The itching feels like it originates from the toenail.. It becomes so intense that my feet and sometimes legs, will jump involuntarily. Normally, getting out of bed and walking around for half an hour will ease the itching, but as soon as my feet get warm again, the itching starts. During the day my feet can be as warm as toast and i don't seem to suffer the same intensity of itchiness, tho i do feel a slight irritation.

RESPONSE

Hi Jim,
The fact that your symptoms are reproducible when you go to bed each night is suggestive of either a neurological or vascular problem as opposed to a skin condition. In a skin condition you would tend to be bothered by this problem all day long, regardless of whether you were in bed or not.
I wish I knew more about your medical history, primarily your age and any major medical conditions that you may suffer from.
Without this information, lets talk about the two possibilities.
1. neurological. In this situation when you go to bed at night there is a chance you are experiencing what is known as a radiculopathy, which is an irritation of the nerves as they come out of the spinal column. Depending

on your position in bed, the spine may be bent in such a manner that certain nerves are being irritated. It then manifests itself along the nerves that in your case go down into the fifth toes. It is symmetrical because the same nerve on each side of the body is being irritated. When you get out of bed and walk around you are releasing the pressure on the nerve and over time the feeling in your toes return to normal.
2. vascular. In this instance because your feet are elevated you are naturally reducing the blood flow into your feet because of no other reason other than gravity is no longer a factor in bringing blood down to your feet. Once again you get out of bed and you walk around, gravity then comes into play and more blood begins to flow into your feet and your symptoms diminish. What we find with many patients with poor circulation is that they sleep in chairs so that they can keep their feet in a dependent position all night.
So which condition are you suffering from? Unfortunately, I cannot answer that because I do not have the luxury of examining you. What I have presented to you are the two main possibilities, but not the only possibility.
Because their is a possibility that this is a circulation issue, my best advice to you would be to seek the services of a local doctor who would be best suited to make an accurate diagnosis.

Marc Mitnick DPM
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ADDITIONAL REFERENCES

Mayo Clinic

Johns Hopkins Medicine

MedlinePlus

Arthritis Foundation

University of Rochester Medical Center

Harvard Health

Drugs.com

American Academy of Pediatrics

Penn State Medical Center

National Institutes of Health

Columbia University Department of Rehabilitation

ScienceDirect

Stanford Health Care

Illinois Bone and Joint Institute

Mount Sinai Hospital

Institute for Chronic Pain

University of Florida Health

American Family Physician

Cedars-Sinai

University of Maryland Medical Center

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Unknown location

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New Zealand

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Poland

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location unknown

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Bre

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anonymous

Dr. Mitnick, Thank you, you were 100% correct. The pain finally brought me to the ER. I spent 8 days in the hospital. The Doppler you spoke of was able to show that there was no pulse in that foot. This was an arterial clot that split and traveled throughout my leg. My leg was almost amputated. I am in rough shape but have all my parts intact!! You certainly know what you are talking about. Thank you for taking the time to answer. Yours Truly!

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Seattle, WA

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location unknown

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New Jersey

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location unknown

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location unknown

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Evansville, IA

Dear Marc

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Jackie

San Diego, CA

Dr. Mitnick, Just want to say thank you so very much for your quick response and very informative reply! After reading what you had to say, I called the doctor's office and was able to get in and see him the same day as my injury. Toe was x-rayed and luckily, it is not broken or fractured. Very badly bruised and will probably lose the toe nail. And although my toe and toe nail are still very black and blue and very sore, they ARE both starting to feel a little better. So again, thank you! I am so very happy that I came across your website. The service you provide is outstanding and immeasurable!

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Albany, NY

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Jill S.

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Whichita, KS

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Boston, MA

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....Keep up what your doing. Your a life saver.

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Colorado

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Colorado

Wonderful advice

by: Anonymous

This is the best site for foot problem info.

Thank you for this information. This description fits my pain and inflammation behind my 2nd toe perfectly.

by: Max

location unknown

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Canada

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location unknown

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Wisconsin

Thank you for your response. You have provided some great insight (to my question)....

Julie

location unknown

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Renae

North Carolina

Many Thanks Dr Marc!
Thank you for your response. It sounds like a good plan to me. He did not cut the wart out first ...

KG

location unknown

Thanks again doc for having this website and we STILL need qualified Podiatrists in beautiful sunny Tampa Bay (Bradenton) Florida.

Bessie Mae

Florida

Dear Dr. Mitnick, Thank you so very much for taking your time to answer my question. You have greatly relieved my anxiety related to the continual tingly I feel in my feet. I will share your response with my podiatrist next week. God bless you for having this question and answer page on your website! Most gratefully,

Lynne T.

location unknown

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New Jersey

Thank you. you were more detailed than what others have told me they finally called from the last xrays and my son is now in a cast for 2 weeks he did have a fracture that was not noticeable.

a mom

location unknown

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Lenoir, NC

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Bellevue, WA

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Jodi

location unknown

itching in little toes when feet get warm at bedtime

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