Have you ever sat down at the end of a long day and felt like your feet were on fire? Do you experience a burning or tingling sensation from time to time when you’re lying in bed? If so, you’re not alone. Many Americans regularly deal with a nighttime burning sensation in their feet, but that doesn’t mean it should be ignored. In today’s blog, we will explain why you may be experiencing a burning sensation in your feet at night and how Dr. Silverman can help you overcome the condition.
Causes of Burning Feet at Night
Several causes and external factors can contribute to a burning sensation in your feet at night. To begin with, you may simply become more aware of your foot comfort when you finally get a chance to sit down and rest after a long day. Consequently, discomfort may seem worse at night when, in fact, it has been persistent throughout the day. You may also experience the sensation of burning feet at night when you take off your socks. Cooler nighttime temperatures not only slow down your heart rate and circulation, which can contribute to a burning sensation in your feet, but sometimes a nerve issue can cause your brain to interpret colder temperatures as a burning sensation.
Of course, there may be several underlying health issues that could also be driving this nighttime burning sensation. The most common is neuropathy (nerve damage), and one of the leading causes of neuropathy is diabetes. If you have diabetes, circulatory issues and nerve damage could be causing you to feel a burning sensation in your feet. Other health conditions that can lead to a nighttime burning sensation in your feet include:
Athlete’s Foot: We discuss athlete’s foot in greater detail on this page, but it involves the onset of a fungal infection that can lead to red, dry, and flaky skin on the feet. These symptoms can leave your feet feeling itchy or like they are burning.
Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease: CMT is an inherited disease that affects a person’s nervous system, with symptoms often first manifesting in the feet. A burning discomfort is an early warning sign of the condition.
Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome: CRPS is a chronic pain condition that develops after damage or trauma to one or more nerves in an area, causing it to relay pain signals when there is no painful stimuli present. Pain, tingling, and burning sensations are common in patients with CRPS.
Peripheral Artery Disease: If the arteries that carry blood to your extremities are narrowed or clogged, oxygenated blood can’t easily reach your feet. This oxygen deprivation can lead to a host of symptoms, including a burning sensation.
Tarsal Tunnel Syndrome: TTS occurs when your posterior tibial nerve, which runs down to the heel of your foot, becomes damaged or compressed. It can lead to a range of localized symptoms, including pain and a burning sensation that seems to radiate out from your heel.
Diagnosing and Treating Burning Feet at Night
If you are experiencing a burning sensation in your feet that is more noticeable at night, reach out to your primary care physician or a foot specialist, especially if the problem is making it difficult for you to relax or fall asleep at night. Your doctor will start by asking about your symptoms, your lifestyle, and any known medical issues in your family. From there, they will likely conduct a physical exam of your feet and check how the area responds to stimuli. Sometimes, your doctor will be able to make a diagnosis based on this exam alone, but if they want a better understanding of what’s happening in your feet, they may order additional diagnostic tests. These tests may include examinations of nerve function, kidney function, cerebral spinal fluid composition, and more.
Treating the problem comes down to getting an accurate diagnosis and focusing on the underlying cause, not just the associated symptoms. For example, individuals with diabetes may notice symptom improvement by better managing their blood glucose levels, exercising more, and striving to eat a balanced diet to work toward a healthy weight. A patient whose burning sensations are tied to athlete’s foot may benefit from topical medication and a switch to more breathable footwear. As long as you and your doctor work to target the specific underlying cause, odds are you can find conservative treatments that can reduce or completely eliminate your nighttime foot discomfort.
