If you’ve recently injured your foot, you might be thinking, “Is my foot broken or bruised?” Both injuries can cause significant pain and swelling, so it’s important to be able to tell the difference in order to seek the proper treatment. Here are some tips to help you determine if your foot is broken or just bruised.
Broken Foot Symptoms
A broken foot can be severe. If left untreated, it can lead to serious complications and decrease your mobility in the future. There are many broken foot symptoms to look out for, including:
- A fracture line or broken skin on the foot.
- Severe swelling
- Pain around a specific joint.
- Pain when your toe(s) are pushed or pulled.
- Bleeding under one or more of the nails.
Bruised Foot Symptoms
Some of the symptoms of a bruised foot are similar to that of a broken foot, but there are key differences. If you have any of the following symptoms, it may be possible that your foot is just bruised.
- Black and blue bruising at the injury site.
- Discoloration of the skin.
- Moderate pain when the area is touched.
- Mild to moderate swelling.
- A lump or bump at the site of injury.
If your foot is bruised, you should still be able to move it, although it may be slightly painful. However, if you have a fracture in your foot, you may not be able to move the foot at all, or it may cause extreme pain to do so.
Knowing the difference between a broken foot and a bruised one can help you get the care that you need. If you’ve injured your foot, the most important thing to do is to keep an eye out for any of the signs mentioned above and seek medical attention from a trained and certified podiatrist if you’re not sure what the injury is. Your doctor can run several diagnostic tests to confirm the diagnosis and provide the proper treatment.
