Top of The Foot Bump – Part 2

Reader Kevin asks “I have a soft tissue swelling (with pain) on the top of my left foot, beneath my ankle and toward my pinky toe. Can’t find any information on it. Any suggestions would be appreciated.”

My suggestion would be a ganglion. A ganglion is usually an out pocketing of a joint including fluid (think balloon), which creates a soft mass in the skin which can enlarge and shrink, depending on the overlying irritation. It’s usually non-tender but can become painful, especially if it enlarges with fluid and there is pressure from a shoe rubbing against it.

This image shows a mild ganglion on the outside of the foot. Ganglions can also occur in the wrists, and legend has it that bibles were used to smack the area as hard as possible to disperse the fluid within the sack. I prefer to use a syringe.

If that doesn’t work, then surgical excision is sometimes necessary as this video shows:

If you have an unusual swelling under the skin on your feet, you will want to have it evaluated by a podiatrist in your area.

For another cause of top of the foot bump see my related post https://drshoe.wordpress.com/2008/02/03/top-of-the-foot-bump/