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Why is my one foot/one ankle/one leg swollen?
Swelling in legs and feet can say a lot about your overall health – not just the health of feet and legs! There are several different reasons for swelling in legs and feet and sometimes this swelling affects one leg while other times it affects both. Are your legs swollen? Your feet? Your toes? Is it more noticeable at any one time of day?
Swelling in one foot or leg only…
When swelling is happening in only one leg, the following are possible reasons for this:
Symptoms of a Bone Bruise
Like sprains and even some fractures, it’s not always obvious when you have bruised your bone. Warning signs to watch out for include:
- Swelling
- Stiffness
- Tenderness and pain that lasts longer than a typical bruise
- Trouble using your joint if the bruise occurs there
1. Injury
A leg/foot/toe is often swollen if an injury has occured. This can be due to sprains, strains, fractures or tendon tears or ruptures. A lot of times, if an injury is the cause of swelling, this is something you would know about and remember an incident. However, in some cases (especially in individuals with neuropathy or numbness in feet/legs) an injury may have occured which didn’t seem like much of a big deal at the time – yet some damage to bone or ligaments may have occured. It is important to treat injuries quickly, or the recovery time can be much longer.
2. Arthritic Process
3. Infection
4. Baker’s Cyst
5. DVT
DVT stands for deep vein thrombosis. When we break this word down, it means that there is a collection of blood (a clot) within a vein deep in the calf of the leg. DVT’s are very dangerous and if left untreated, can cause migration of the clot to the lungs and even be deadly. A DVT is often accompanied with a feeling of a charlie horse in the calf as well as warmth of the leg as compared to the other side.
As you can see, the causes of swelling that is only present in one appendage can be due to a vast variety of causes. Treatments for these causes is very different from one to the next. If you have swelling in one leg, one foot, even one toe – especially if it is painful, consider seeing your doctor to seek treatment before the problem gets worse!
Meet Weil Foot & Ankle Institute
By: Weil Foot & Ankle Institute, Published: Jan 22nd, 2022
Review By: Kristin Abruscato DPT – Jan 19th, 2023