Time for a quick English lesson—wait, don’t go! It’ll be fun! You might have heard people say not to “get callous” over something. Does that mean not to grow a nasty, thick patch of skin? Not quite. That’s a callus. See the difference?
“Callous”—with an “o”—is a related word to “callus,” but it doesn’t have anything to do physically with thickened skin. It’s more of a figurative thick-skinned, as in “unfeeling.” So if you grow callous over your calluses, it means you don’t really care about them anymore. That would just be sad.
The source of a callus is really quite simple: friction. When something is rubbing up against and irritating the skin, it will begin to build up hardened layers in an effort to protect itself. It’s not pretty, but it gets the job done.
Getting rid of a callus on the foot is most often a matter of finding and eliminating the source of the friction. In many cases, this is an ill-fitting shoe that compresses and repeatedly rubs against the area. Other times, it may be a misalignment in the foot structure that is adding too much stress to the spot.
Dr. Kevin Powers and our helpful staff can help you find the causes of friction in your feet and relieve them. This may mean a change of footwear, the use of custom-made inserts, or in some rare cases, surgery. We can also trim away some of the excess buildup, if needed (something you should never try yourself at home!).
If it’s time to care for your calluses, our Bloomington office is here to help. Give us a call at (812) 333-4422 to schedule an appointment.
