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What Causes Pain In Leg From Groin To Toes?

Posted on Tue, 16 Sep 2014

Question: My mom is 70 year old woman with the following symptoms: very active until pain began 2 years ago. Pain in her left leg, it begins in her groin, tightens up on left hamstring, proceeded behind knee ending under the pad behind my toes. Leg cramps in hamstring at night, when she straightens it out and puts a hot water bottle on it, or has it massaged, this helps. She had knee anthroscophy surgery to clean out bone chips and mend a bucket handle tear, and was walking after this. She has a history of shingles on her left side, with Shingle like symptoms this Spring (itching bottoms of her foot, a rash on her left leg, into the groin, all of which have subsided). The pain increased after she had a Rolfing session, where the practicioner worked on her hamstring and the pain recently increased when she played a basketball (just throwing/rocking back and forth motion?) The knee is difficult to bend, she can apply weight...going downhill is more difficult than going up the stairs. It feels to me like a mixture of possibilities. Ask a knee doctor: it's the knee. Ask the general praticioner: it's shingles. Any thooughts? THANK YOU!

Answered by Dr. Saurabh Gupta (1 hour later)

Brief Answer:
Possibly due to Osteoarthritic changes in her knee

Detailed Answer:
Hello,
Thanks for your query.

Problem of your mother could be possibly due to Osteoarthritic changes in her knee (owing to her age and symptom of difficult bending of knee and difficultly in going downhill).

Xrays of the involved joint will show up the severity of the arthritic (wear & tear) changes in the joint.

To have relief in osteoarthritis knee, she should do following-

-Start doing exercises for quadriceps muscles.She may learn this from her physiotherapist.

-Start doing warm fomentation with rubber bag over knee for at least 3 times a day.

-Take a good analgesic like advil or aleeve.

-There are some dietary substances like glucosamine ,chondroitin sulfate,MSM which can be taken OTC.These substances help in repairing of damaged cartilage of knee in early stages.

-Avoid squatting movements at knee.

-In early stages exercises, medicines ,joint supplements & intra articular injections are helpful & may revert the changes but in late cases joint replacement is only option.

I do hope that you have found something helpful and I will be glad to answer any further query.

Take care

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Saurabh Gupta (2 hours later)

what about the painful food bed? the itching and the pain in the hamstring?
Thank You!

Answered by Dr. Saurabh Gupta (10 hours later)

Brief Answer:
Could be due to nerve compression.

Detailed Answer:
Hi,

Pain in the hamstring,leg and bed of foot could be due to nerve compression at lower back.

I suggest her to have MRI scan of lumbar spine to know the exact pathology. The management protocol depends on the severity of nerve compression.

Consult an orthopedic surgeon for further workup and management.

Wishing her good health.

Warm regards.

Note: For further queries, consult a joint and bone specialist, an Orthopaedic surgeon. Book a Call now.

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar