Hi, can anyone direct me in the right direction. Last sat. I stepped on very large nail, and it went right into the bone. (YES YIKES) Bled for a while I cleaned it up and put Ointment on it and bandaged it. WELL it's been about 5 days now and it is still very tender, almost to a point where I'm finding it very hard to walk on. I did go to a Doctor and he said it was not infected to keep an eye on it. He even said it would be tender for a few day. Ok a few days I can deal with, but I'm on my feet all day long and need to have some relief! Any Suggestion as what I can put on it or use to relieve that tenderness? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Oh and I have had a tetanus Shot. Thanks for correct spelling ISneezeFunny!

Thanks!

Hi fizzlebent,
Glad you saw a doctor. It hurts to be on your feet all day. If you are resting/sparing the injured foot, the other gets tired. Whenever you are not standing up, elevate the foot if you can. In the evening, put your foot up and put ice on it for 15 minutes or so, then off for 15 minutes or so. NSAID, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug can help. If your stomach is OK with it, use Ibuprofen (Advil is the name brand). They can be purchased in 200mg/capsule size. Unlike aspirin and Tylenol (acetaminophen), ibuprofen works more if more is taken until relief occurs. A bad burn is going to take more mg to stop the pain than a sinus headache. A doctor would recommend not taking more than 600mg every 4-6 hours. Higher doses may injure your kidneys.

Ideally, you would get off your feet. Can you take a few days off work?

One of those gel-type shoe inserts might help give some extra cushion.

If doc says not infected, and you've had your tetanus, and the wound doesn't look infected (swollen, greenish/bluish tint with pus coming out), take some ibuprofen. Dress with bandage but not too tight, just enough to cover it up, elevate as often as possible. If you're sleeping, put a pillow under it. But yeah, I would get a second opinion. Most "nails through the bone" require a little more than just ointment.

Doc did not put you on prophylactic antibiotics? A penetrating injury to a bone is usually treated with antibiotics to prevent osteomylitis (infection of the bone). If it's still hurting that bad, you may need to have it rechecked by a doctor.

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Originally Posted by J_9

Doc did not put you on prophylactic antibiotics? A penetrating injury to a bone is usually treated with antibiotics to prevent osteomylitis (infection of the bone). If it's still hurting that bad, you may need to have it rechecked by a doctor.

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Ok thanks! Will look into it.:eek: :eek:

I also recommend having it checked out. A penetrating wound like that often drives bacteria or even bit of your show deep into the foot. An infection may take a few days to "fester" before it becomes apparent by just looking at the foot.