Burning feet

DEFINITION

Burning feet — the sensation that your feet are painfully hot — can be mild or severe. In some cases, your burning feet may be so painful that the pain interferes with your sleep. With certain conditions, burning feet may also be accompanied by a pins and needles sensation (paresthesia) or numbness, or both.

Burning feet may also be referred to as tingling feet or paresthesia.

CAUSES

Burning feet that occurs infrequently or for a short time may simply occur because your feet are tired or you have an irritation such as athlete’s foot. Persistent or progressive burning feet, however, can be a symptom of nerve damage (peripheral neuropathy), perhaps due to diabetes, chronic alcohol use, exposure to certain toxins, certain B vitamin deficiencies or HIV.

Possible causes of burning feet:

1. Alcoholism or chronic alcohol use
2. Athlete’s foot
3. Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (a group of hereditary disorders that affects the nerves in your arms and legs)
4. Chemotherapy
5. Chronic kidney disease
6. Complex regional pain syndrome (chronic pain due to a dysfunctional nervous system)
7. Diabetic neuropathy (diabetes-related nerve damage)
8. HIV/AIDS
9. Hypothyroidism (a thyroid disorder)
10. Tarsal tunnel syndrome
11. Vitamin deficiency anemia

WHEN TO SEE A DOCTOR

If your burning feet persist or if there is no apparent cause, then your doctor will need to do tests to determine if any of the various conditions that cause peripheral neuropathy are to blame.

Self-care

• Rest and elevate your feet.
• Switch to more comfortable shoes.
• Bathe your feet in cool water.