Prevalence of Morton’s Neuroma and Its Association with Pain among Young Girls Wearing High Heels

Background: Morton’s neuroma is a painful condition that affects the ball of the foot and is characterized by severe pain and disability. Wearing high heels, the center of gravity of the body shifts forward, decreases the base of support on the weight-bearing foot, the metatarsophalangeal joint moves into hyperextension, and the nerve compresses between metatarsal heads, resulting in neuroma. Objective: To evaluate the prevalence of Morton’s neuroma and its association with pain and disability among high heels wearing sales girls. Methodology: A cross-sectional study was conducted from February to June 2024, at the shopping malls of Faisalabad, during four months after the approval of the synopsis. The study population included 98 sales girls wearing high-heeled shoes, using convenient sampling. The screening of the study population was done by the thumb index finger squeeze test and by a screening form. The participants included were 20 to 35 years old sales girls who wore high-heeled shoes at least 4 times a week for 4 consecutive hours, wearing high-heeled shoes minimum of 1 year, heel length of 5cm or higher. The participants were excluded with a history of fracture and trauma of the foot, history of surgery, deformity of the metatarsophalangeal joint, osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, ankylosis, spondylitis, claw or hammer toe, and peripheral neuropathy. The Foot Function Index is used to evaluate the impact of foot disability and pain by dividing into three sub-scales: pain, disability, and activity restriction. The score was determined by using a numeric rating scale, which ranges from 0 to 10. Results: According to this study, 59.18% of sales girls have a positive thumb index finger squeeze test, and 40.82% have a negative test. The result of the total prevalence of Morton’s neuroma was analysed by frequency distribution according to the results of 98 participants; 59.18% of participants were diagnosed with Morton’s neuroma, while 40.82% did not have neuroma. Conclusion: It was concluded that the prevalence of Morton’s neuroma among sales girls wearing high heels was high. The findings showed that high heels were significantly associated with Morton’s neuroma.