Generally speaking, "hammer toe" means a bending of any of the toe joints. Joints in the middle or at the end of the toe, as well as the joint near the ball of the foot, may be involved. Toe joints can curve and buckle because of tight tendons or muscle imbalance. Some hammer toes are severe, depending on how many of the joints are involved.
Tight shoes, pantyhose or socks can be the cause of hammertoes.
There are two different kinds of hammertoes, flexible joint or rigid joint. A flexible joint may turn into a rigid joint as you get older.
- Flexible Joint - You can straighten this kind of joint out with your fingers. Even though they look painful, they usually are not.
- Rigid Joint - This kind of joint is not movable, even with your fingers. Rigid joints can be painful and cause discomfort. They may disable foot bio-mechanics, putting extra pressure and stress on the ball of the foot, causing a callus on the sole of the foot.