If you have significant pain deep in your foot, accompanied by swelling and other symptoms, it's possible that you may have an infection in one of your bones. This is a problem that you should take to your local podiatrist, and it's ideal to do so promptly because infections can worsen until they receive the treatment they require. Your podiatrist will check out the condition of your foot and assess your symptoms to determine if a bone infection is indeed the issue. They'll be able to successfully treat this ailment in a number of different ways, which will reduce your pain and allow you to get back to your regular daily activities. Here are three treatment methods.

Wound Drainage

If you have a bone infection in your foot, there's a good chance that you have an open wound that has resulted in bacteria being able to enter the foot and make its way to the bone. In order to control the infection, your podiatrist will likely need to drain this wound. There are various ways to drain a wound, including making small cuts or punctures in it to allow the pus to escape. You might notice a decrease in the swelling and discomfort of your foot soon after the podiatrist drains the wound.

Medication

Various types of medication will often be necessary when you have a bone infection in your foot. Specifically, the podiatrist will write you a prescription for an antibiotic. This medication will attack the infection and eliminate it. The antibiotic medication works over the course of several days; you'll likely notice a steady improvement in your symptoms. To deal with the pain that is often present in your foot, your podiatrist may also recommend that you take a pain management medication, which you can obtain over the counter.

Surgery

If your body doesn't respond favorably to the medication, it's possible that your podiatrist will need to schedule you for a prompt surgical procedure. This procedure commonly involves actually removing the infected bone. This is an effective way to keep the infection from spreading to the rest of your foot, which could have serious consequences. They may also need to cut away some of the tissue around the bone, as the tissue can be damaged as a result of the infection. The prognosis for recovery after a successful surgery is good.

Contact a podiatrist for more information on this topic. 

Share