Anyone up? I'm in so much pain I can't sleep. What the hell is wrong with my toe?!

[cherriesandcustard]

Weird thing happened this evening. My right toe started throbbing and getting sore mid evening and when I took of my sock at bedtime it was red and hot and incredibly painful. I suddenly couldn't stand on it and it's been like that since. Haven't been able to get a wink of sleep. Have taken a naproxen, raised my foot on DD's beanbag but bloody hell it's hurting. I don't know what to do with myself.

Agree it sounds very typical of gout. You do need infection ruling out though, so you will need to get it seen in the morning.

I work for an organisation that works with people with arthritis (of which gout is a sub-type). While lifestyle factors can trigger attacks there’s a genetic pre-disposition that underlies it all.

I know vegans who’ve been diagnosed.

Thankfully a visit to the doctor, a blood test to check uric acid levels in your blood and some pills mean that nowadays it doesn’t have to be debilitating and is easily fixed. The problem is, due to the stigma a lot of people are too embarrassed to treat and prevent.

Sounds like gout, where you can have a family predisposition even if you don't eat/drink triggering things. Could also be septic if there have been breaks in your skin to let the bacterial in. Either way should be seen as both would need treatment.

Just one toe? Big toe?
Is the pain and main swelling around the side of the nail or has the whole toe swollen up?

An ingrown toenail kept me awake at night for months. Luckily it didn’t get infected but the pain was like nothing else.

When this happened to me it was an infection. No idea how it got infected as there wasn’t any visible puncture wounds or scrapes of any kind. It was agony but antibiotics cleared it up very quickly. I didn’t have a fever either. The pus that eventually came out of it was spectacular!

Was the fungal infection confirmed? Sounds like psoriatic arthritis, psoriasis in the nail looks like a fungal infection, and one of the symptoms is sausage toe - one toe can become hot and swollen and very painful. Ibuprofen should help or non steroid anti immflametry. (NSAID) You also get random joint pain and stiffness which is worse when you wake up. I speak from experience unfortunately.

I've had covid toe and it was excruciating.

Gout
I would be willing to bet on it. Classical description
Take some ibuprofen

Also willing to bet on it being gout. My DH has it - he’s very fit and healthy, so doesn’t fit the stereotype. The doctor told him it’s mainly genetic. I hope you’re ok, OP. I see you’ve already got naproxen (which is the main pain relief provided for a gout attack). Unfortunately there’s little you can do but ride it out - drink lots of water as it helps flush out the uric acid which has built up. Then I’d suggest going to your doctor to discuss longer term preventative measures. Good luck!

I have had this too. It turned out to be inflammatory arthritis.

@Jtjh actually explains it better that me.

Joining in the chorus of gout....
It could be something else but it sounds pretty classic to me.
It needs to be checked out in the morning.

And no, not drinking and not eating meat doesn't stop you getting it. It's like anything else, those are risk factors which increase the likelihood of you getting it but it doesn't mean if you do none of those things you can't get it.

I got gout as a very active 12 year old! A very long time ago. I remember it was agony! Good luck OP

Joining in the chorus of saying gout - textbook symptoms!

Naproxen and plenty of fluids.

Gout !

@Jtjh

Was the fungal infection confirmed? Sounds like psoriatic arthritis, psoriasis in the nail looks like a fungal infection, and one of the symptoms is sausage toe - one toe can become hot and swollen and very painful. Ibuprofen should help or non steroid anti immflametry. (NSAID) You also get random joint pain and stiffness which is worse when you wake up. I speak from experience unfortunately.

Exactly what I was going to say.

I had this 2weeks ago for a few days and then went away as fast as it had started!

Covid toe or cellulitis

Another one to say it sounds like Gout.
Hope you get a diagnosis soon and feel better quickly.

@cherriesandcustard

I see what you mean but no I can't see anything 'locally' so to speak. I did have a fungal toe infection on that toe for an age but the GP did a clipping test a few months back and declared me free of it. It's come on so suddenly and I can't walk at all. Hopped to the bathroom about half an hour ago and it was excruciating

Sounds a bit like cellulitis.

My first thought was Gout.

My OH suffers from gout from time to time. He is a drinker, but he only gets gout if he eats chick peas, hummus or lentils. He once got it from eating lentil flavoured crisps.
Sometimes he gets it in his knee as well and he can't get dressed as the swelling is so big.
A friend of his, also a drinker, gets it from eating sea food.
Hope you get some relief soon, he finds diclofenac helps plus drinking cranberry juice.

My DH’s gets gout, in fact is suffering right now (brought on by Guinness this time 🤔). In the past we have linked it to soya milk, indeed soya can be inflammatory, so don’t discount gout.

I think it sounds like gout. My DH suffers with it, and he is a lifelong vegetarian who hardly drinks.

Covid toe , chillblain, gout